Former Playboy Playmate Anna Nicole Smith’s lawyer-turned-lover Howard K. Stern has reached a settlement over a tell-all book about the late star.

Stern was seeking 60 million dollars in damages against the Hachette Book Group and TV reporter-turned-writer Rita Cosby.

He accused them both of libel over a series of claims made about his sexuality in ‘Blonde Ambition: The Untold Story Behind Anna Nicole Smith’’s Death’, reports Contactmusic.

According to gossip website TMZ.com, Stern has settled the matter with the writer in a confidential deal.

Smith was found unconscious in her room at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel and Casino near Hollywood, Florida, in February 2007.

A post-mortem report said the American model died of an accidental overdose of prescription drugs including anti-depressants.

Stern and his associates Dr. Khristine Eroshevich and Dr. Sandeep Kapoor, were charged with conspiracy to feed the star’s drug addiction. All the three have pleaded not guilty.

::splittin' image of Anna Nicole!::

 Isn’t she just the cutest thing? 

 Anna Nicole would be proud.

R.I.P,  Baby.  

::she was gorgeous, wasn't she...::

It’s truly a shame this lovely lady had to die.    At 39 .   She had a lot of bad things happen to her; and she had a lot of bad people around her…

A true shame…

(::sigh::)

Larry Birkhead and 3-year-old daughter Dannielynn were spotted going through security at LAX today.

Dannielynn has really grown into a beautiful little girl. Her mom, the late Anna Nicole Smith, would be so proud of her.

{FAME}

A LOT!  The first lesson we can learn is that wealth and fame does not guarantee good estate planning.  Let’s look at two recent examples.

Anna Nicole Smith:  Her estate plan consisted of a Will.  A Will is a legal document which leaves instructions to the Probate Court detailing how one’s estate should be administered and distributed.  The common complaints about probate are that the process is very time consuming (lasting approximately 1 to 1.5 years), expensive (about 5% of the value of the estate), and public (as evidenced by all the media attention).  In order to avoid the Probate Process, it is common to establish a Revocable Living Trust as the basis for an estate plan in lieu of a Will.  Smith’s Will did in fact create a trust but not until after it had been administered though the Will.  This type of planning (referred to as a testamentary trust) seems like a waste of time and resources.  Given Smith’s high profile and the likelihood that there would be some sort of contest (conflict) involved in the case, a public forum for administering the estate proved to be a very bad idea.

Heath Ledger:  While Ledger’s Will was ultimately handled in Australia, his native country, there is a very valuable lesson to be learned from his case as well.  It became well publicized that his daughter Matilda was not named or provided for in the document.  Because Matilda was not specifically named as a beneficiary, whether or not she will be provided for will depend on defaults provided under the governing law.  While this can seem shocking, it is actually very common for important changes in one’s life to be overlooked in their estate plan.  This unfortunate error is very common.  In fact, lack of updating is one of the biggest and most common mistakes I see in reviewing estate plans.   Anna Nicole Smith’s Will also failed to name or specifically provide for her youngest child because of lack of updating.

What’s the lesson to be learned? While we may not all be celebrities, we do all have people we care enough about to want to protect and provide for.  Taking the time to establish and maintain a good estate planning does not require fame or wealth nor does having them guarantee that good planning has been done for you.  Please take the time to work with an experienced professional to ensure that what you do have is protected for those you care about.

–*The guy who’s going to eat your lunch.

–*The guy who’s going to eat that whole pizza.

–*The woman who’s going to break up your marriage.

–*The photographer who’s going to make this the best high school reunion ever.

–*The radio host who’s going to ruin Barack Obama’s day.

–*The man who’s going to snort a couple of bumps and then drop dead playing racquetball.

–*The man who’s keeping the Fed funds rate at 2% so that the resulting weakened dollar will cause exports to spike.

–*The guy who told you all along that gutting the Glass-Steagall Act was a bad idea and would wreck the economy.

–*The grocery clerk who’s going to force you to use that gun.

–*The Lesbian your mom’s gonna move in with.

–*The lady astronaut who will drive all night, not even stopping to change her soiled astronaut diapers, to win back your love.

–*The man who opened the Berlin Wall by accident.

–*The man who taught Anna Nicole how to love.

–*The woman who taught Grover Norquist how to love.

–*The woman who gave the most guys chlamydia at South Beach last spring break

–*The guy whose potato looks more like Jesus than any other potato in this part of Nebraska.

–*The guy with the biggest opening weekend in box office history

–*God

–*Jesus

–*John Lennon

–*James Cameron

–*It doesn’t matter who I think I am, because existence precedes essence, and only my actions define me.

–*I don’t know who I am, but maybe I’ll have it figured out by the time this reality show I star in begins its third season.

“Trial & Heirs: Famous Fortune Fights!” Explores High-Profile Cases & Offers Expert Advice

The highly publicized estate battles of several deceased celebrities have cast a bright spotlight on the importance of having the proper estate planning. Although mega-rich celebrities seem to be affected overwhelmingly by these brutal family squabbles, the new book

“Trial & Heirs: Famous Fortune Fights!” is designed to help every family, regardless of income level, avoid the financial pitfalls that drained bank accounts and created huge family rifts for the dozens of superstars profiled in the book.

“Trial & Heirs” uses real stories to help readers steer clear of the same celebrity “estate errors” as they plan for their own “heirs.” The stories cover well known legal fights over famous fortunes: including the recent battles over Michael Jackson’s estate, along with other celebrities like Ted Kennedy; Anna Nicole Smith; Brooke Astor; Heath Ledger, Ray Charles; Princess Di; Jimi Hendrix; Frank Sinatra; Martin Luther King Jr.; and Rosa Parks… as well as many others that most people aren’t even aware of.  The book gives readers a front row seat in the courtroom while the authors replay the “tabloid drama”, point out what went wrong in these riveting cases, and teach readers how to avoid similar errors.

“Trial & Heirs: Famous Fortune Fights!” was written by co-authors Andrew Mayoras and Danielle Mayoras, legacy expert attorneys with strong reputations and extensive experience in estate planning, probate, elder law, and litigation. The husband and wife team are two of the co-founders of The Center for Elder Law, The Center for Special Needs Planning, and The Center for Probate Litigation.

“Here we have common problems that could easily be avoided,” says co-author Andrew Mayoras, a probate litigator who writes the popular Probate Lawyer Blog.  “We want to teach people about the importance of proper legacy planning, because these fights don’t just happen to the rich and famous,” he says.  Andrew says because his job is battling in the trenches of probate court, he sees first-hand the devastation caused by poor planning.  “If by writing this book we help keep families from feuding in court, then we’ve accomplished our mission.”

Co-author Danielle Mayoras agrees. “As an estate planner and educator, the most frequent question I’m asked is:  ‘How do I get my parents to talk about these issues?’  This book is the answer,” says co-author Danielle Mayoras, a professional speaker, attorney, and credentialed professional gerontologist. “Our goal was to take a difficult topic that no one wants to talk about and make it fun and entertaining with the use of famous stories.”  Danielle says they want to spark people into action to protect their families and legacies through the proper estate planning.

The book will soon be released from Wise Circle Books and is listed at $19.95.  It is already getting rave reviews from many who have seen advance copies, including: Hollywood producers Karen Baldwin and Ken Wales, national radio talk show host Danny Fontana, famed Hollywood publicist Michael Levine and more.

For more information and to read a free preview of “Trial & Heirs:  Famous Fortune Fights!” visit TrialAndHeirs.com.

To schedule an interview with Andrew and Danielle Mayoras, please contact Toni Burge at prmedia.contact@gmail.com or Todd Brabender at todd@spreadthenewspr.com.

“Trial & Heirs: Famous Fortune Fights!” Explores High-Profile Cases & Offers Expert Advice

The highly publicized estate battles of several deceased celebrities have cast a bright spotlight on the importance of having the proper estate planning. Although mega-rich celebrities seem to be affected overwhelmingly by these brutal family squabbles, the new book

“Trial & Heirs: Famous Fortune Fights!” is designed to help every family, regardless of income level, avoid the financial pitfalls that drained bank accounts and created huge family rifts for the dozens of superstars profiled in the book.

“Trial & Heirs” uses real stories to help readers steer clear of the same celebrity “estate errors” as they plan for their own “heirs.” The stories cover well known legal fights over famous fortunes: including the recent battles over Michael Jackson’s estate, along with other celebrities like Ted Kennedy; Anna Nicole Smith; Brooke Astor; Heath Ledger, Ray Charles; Princess Di; Jimi Hendrix; Frank Sinatra; Martin Luther King Jr.; and Rosa Parks… as well as many others that most people aren’t even aware of.  The book gives readers a front row seat in the courtroom while the authors replay the “tabloid drama”, point out what went wrong in these riveting cases, and teach readers how to avoid similar errors.

“Trial & Heirs: Famous Fortune Fights!” was written by co-authors Andrew Mayoras and Danielle Mayoras, legacy expert attorneys with strong reputations and extensive experience in estate planning, probate, elder law, and litigation. The husband and wife team are two of the co-founders of The Center for Elder Law, The Center for Special Needs Planning, and The Center for Probate Litigation.

“Here we have common problems that could easily be avoided,” says co-author Andrew Mayoras, a probate litigator who writes the popular Probate Lawyer Blog.  “We want to teach people about the importance of proper legacy planning, because these fights don’t just happen to the rich and famous,” he says.  Andrew says because his job is battling in the trenches of probate court, he sees first-hand the devastation caused by poor planning.  “If by writing this book we help keep families from feuding in court, then we’ve accomplished our mission.”

Co-author Danielle Mayoras agrees. “As an estate planner and educator, the most frequent question I’m asked is:  ‘How do I get my parents to talk about these issues?’  This book is the answer,” says co-author Danielle Mayoras, a professional speaker, attorney, and credentialed professional gerontologist. “Our goal was to take a difficult topic that no one wants to talk about and make it fun and entertaining with the use of famous stories.”  Danielle says they want to spark people into action to protect their families and legacies through the proper estate planning.

The book will soon be released from Wise Circle Books and is listed at $19.95.  It is already getting rave reviews from many who have seen advance copies, including: Hollywood producers Karen Baldwin and Ken Wales, national radio talk show host Danny Fontana, famed Hollywood publicist Michael Levine and more.

For more information and to read a free preview of “Trial & Heirs:  Famous Fortune Fights!” visit TrialAndHeirs.com.

To schedule an interview with Andrew and Danielle Mayoras, please contact Toni Burge at prmedia.contact@gmail.com or Todd Brabender at todd@spreadthenewspr.com.

.marilyn monroe photographed by tom kelley on the twenty-seventh in the lusty month of may 1949.

.arline hunter as miss august 1954 in playboy magazine.

.anna nicole smith photographed by dirk kikstra at the las vegas hilton hotel for mao mag in 2004.

It’s Simple!!! At 8:00 p.m. EST, just log onto www.blogtalkradio.com and click on the “ON AIR” icon. Call in with your questions for Mark Fuhrman and join me live in the chat room!!!  This is gonna be fun.  My show page is www.blogtalkradio.com/Watts-Up-With-This

See ya Tonight!!!!!

TV Host/Producer/Report and author of the blog “Watts Up With This” launches his weekly radio show Sunday, Nov. 8th at 8:00 p.m. EST. Tune in to hear Steph break down the latest news from inside the investigations of the biggest cases making headlines. Steph will also weigh in on the media’s coverage of the stories of the week with special guests from inside the investigations, and inside the networks. Tune in — you won’t want to miss this look behind the scenes of what makes the news

JUSTICE IS JUST A CLICK AWAY
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Watts-Up-With-This
It’s simple, no fees to listen, no complicated logins — just click the link above every Sunday night at 8:00 p.m. sharp and listen. And if you have a comment, you can email or call in and be on the show LIVE!!!

NOVEMBER LAUNCH LINE-UP

SUNDAY, NOV 8TH 8:00PM — GUEST: MARK FUHRMAN AUTHOR OF “THE MURDER BUSINESS”

The show debut will feature an exclusive interview with Mark Fuhrman. Fuhrman rose to infamy during his involvement as a detective in the OJ Simpson case. He has gone on to author several books, and is a FOX News Consultant. In an exclusive interview, and for the first time ever, Fuhrman will talk candidly about what really happened in the OJ Simpson case. Additionally, he will bring us behind the scenes of other high profile cases like Casey Anthony, Drew Peterson and Haleigh Cummings. All of these cases are featured in his new book “The Murder Business” available now on amazon.com. We will be taking your calls.

SUNDAY, NOV. 15TH 8:00PM — HIGH PROFILE CRIMES — GUESTS: DR. MICHAEL BADEN, AND CASEY ANTHONY ATTORNEY LINDA KENNEY BADEN

Please join me for an exclusive interview with husband and wife team Dr. Michael Baden and Linda Kenny Baden. Dr Baden is the former Chief Medical Examiner of New York City, and he is the host of the HBO “Autopsy” series, now in its thirteenth year. He is also a Contributor for FOX News Channel, and is a reviewer for the New England Journal of Medicine. He performed the autopsy on Kathleen Savio, 3rd wife of Bolingbrook Police Officer Drew Peterson, now behind bars. Dr Baden’s results reclassified Savio’s murder from an accident to a homicide. Linda Kenny Baden, an expert Criminal Defense Attorney and Author, best known for her work on the Phil Spector defense team, is also preparing to defend Casey Anthony in her death penalty case in Florida. Together they penned two thriller novels — “Remains Silent” and “Skeleton Justice.” Available on amazon.com. They will take us inside their cases, inside their lives together, and take your calls!!

SUNDAY NOV. 22ND — GUEST: GIRLS GONE WILD FOUNDER JOE FRANCIS

Joe Francis, Founder of the Multi-Billion dollar empire “Girls Gone Wild” sits down with me for the hour, to talk openly about prison, fame, beating the latest tax evasion charges, and what really went down with Brody Jenner’s girlfriend, Jayde Nicole.  Joe, often referred to as a “Modern Day Larry Flint”, tells it like is and takes your calls!!

SUNDAY NOV. 29TH — GUESTS: ANNA NICOLE REMEMBERED; PATRICK SIMPSON AND POL ATTEAU

The day after what would have been Anna Nicole Smith’s 42nd birthday, her 2 closest friends, Patrick Simpson and Pol’ Atteu open up about what Anna’s life was really like. For the first time ever, they will reveal what happened right before Anna died, talk about her relationship with the 2 doctors who prescribed her drugs, Dr. Sandeep Kapoor and Dr. Khristine Eroshevich, now charged in her death, reveal the truth about Larry Birkhead and what they witnessed Howard Stern doing to Anna. You won’t want to miss this!!! Join them live for the hour and we will be taking your calls.

Clips from a home video of Anna Nicole Smith six months before her fatal prescription drug overdose are now being used in a criminal case against her former boyfriend, Howard K. Stern, and two former doctors, Dr. Khristine Eroshevich and Dr. Sandeep Kapoor. Prosecutors argue that the three individuals “conspired to keep Smith in a drug stupor in the two years before her death,” according to cnn.com

Howard K. Stern, Khristine Eroshevich and Sandeep Kapoor (credit: eonline.com)

The 45-minute-long video, shot in August 2006 by Stern, shows Smith at what appears to be some sort of party. A nine-year-old girl named Riley is painting clown makeup on Smith’s face, while the fallen blonde bombshell mistakes a toy doll for her unborn child and attributes her bloated belly to gas. She cannot comprehend the situation and continually denies her pregnancy as Stern and Riley try to explain. At one point, Riley looks into the camera and says that Smith is “having brain trouble.”

Stern’s defense lawyer says that the video was all acting—Smith was merely putting on a show just like she had throughout her career and reality TV series, and the tape should not be considered evidence because segments proving this were edited out. But Riley and her parents, now key witnesses in the case, have testified that they saw Smith being drugged. Riley said that “she saw Stern pour a liquid ‘medicine’ for Smith before the video was recorded,” according to the cnn.com article. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Robert Perry said the video did not make a difference in his decision to send the case to trial.

CLICK HERE TO BE DIRECTED TO THE VIDEO CLIP

I honestly felt sick after I watched this video…it is really very upsetting. For this reason, and because the footage has been turned over to LA court, I decided not embed the clips. Anna Nicole is so tragically out of her mind, leading me to believe it’s highly possible she was drugged by her boyfriend and doctors. If I saw someone this messed up, my last reaction would be to fetch the video camera and record some memories. If Stern and the doctors did not have some hand in this state of affairs, then why wouldn’t they have intervened? Apparently there are more clips floating around on the Internet somewhere, but I’m not going to search for or watch them. However the court rules, I hope they do so carefully and fairly so that Anna Nicole can rest in peace.

Segundo a Reuters, em Los Angeles, um juiz da Califórnia ordenou na última sexta-feira [30.10.2009] que o namorado e os dois médicos da ex-modelo da Playboy e atriz Anna Nicole Smith (que morreu por uma overdose de medicamentos em fevereiro de 2007 aos 39 anos) irão a julgamento pelas acusações de alimentar seu vício a remédios receitados. Leia mais clicando aqui.

Anna Nicole Smith, 2004

Happy Halloween!  In honor of the spooky holiday, Vol.1 has collected some particularly frightening Bites, ranging from the traditionally fun-filled, the absolutely outraging, and the sadly serious.

Lit.

• Did medical malpractice lead to the death of John Keats, leaving the poet starving and anguished?  Wait, isn’t that what poets are definitively?
• After losing his own book deal, South Carolina governor Mark Sanford praises Ayn Rand.
• In a review of Alistair Morgan’s Sleeper’s Wake, The Rumpus expostulates on the penis as literary device, citing memorable protagonists  “whose dicks are divining rods for locating fleeting pleasure and lasting trouble.”
• An essay on vampire literature.
• Why am I scared of this?: How to find the best literary Twitter chat
• R.L. Stine (yes, you read him!) window displays at the Scholastic store in SoHo.

Theater and Film:

• So I guess people are still enamored with the bodaciously hott Ms. Johansson?  Apparently, she’s on her way to New York to appear on Broadway in Arthur Miller’s Tony-winning “A View From the Bridge.”  I’m sorry, World, I just don’t see it.  Stop handing ScarJo the green card to bastardize our (very few, it sometimes seems) decent artistic endeavors.  (Woody Allen, I’m serious, that means you!)  I could rant about this for awhile, but instead I’ll quietly continue collecting our news.
• Ghostbusters is real!!  The Aykroyd family’s real-life experience with ghosts and goblins inspired the timeless movie.
• Martin Scorsese lists his 11 scariest horror films of all time.

Health:

• Did you know that 114 children have been killed by the H1N1 virus in the US since April?  And only half of those most at risk have sought vaccines.  “At risk” means, apparently, those with underlying conditions such as heart disease, asthma, or lung disease.
• Making pumpkin pie this weekend?  Might as well turn your kitchen into a meth lab!  Junk food is as addicting as hard drugs, a study claims.
• Oh my.  Anna Nicole Smith mistook her pregnancy for gas.  On video.

Trim Spa Baby

Even a couple years after her death, Anna is still in the spotlight, but in a different way. We all remember her reality show on E!, The Anna Nicole Show. I watched it, who didn’t at least catch a few seconds of the poor woman making  a fool of herself.  It was rather sad to watch her at times, because she was always high and her speech was so delayed. I felt bad for her and would sometimes get embarrassed for her. Let’s take a look at this video of Anna Nicole at the music awards http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uRN4aPsKXo&feature=related Oh Dear God, I wanted to pull the words out for her. The sad part is Howard K. Stern the infamous attorney, father of her daughter not the father of daughter knew of her drug problem and let the world know. Shame on him! Anyways, new videos are coming out and now a full 50 minute video was released for the drug case against Stern and Anna’s doctors.  I cringed when I watched part of the video, because she was so high and noticeable pregnant. Who allowed her to take these while pregnant? Most importantly what doctor prescribed them to her while pregnant? Take a look at the video, courtesy of TMZ.com http://www.tmz.com/2009/10/30/anna-nicole-mistakes-pregnancy-for-gas/ 

What do you think should happen to Howard K. Stern?

Ever since  I heard that the grave next to Marilyn Monroe’s was put on sale,  I’ve been wondering what it was about her that people love so much (men and women) so naturally I had to find out.  What was so captivating that today that people are willing to spend millions to spend an eternity next to her be buried next to her?

Time and time again she appears in pop culture representing the epitome of beauty.  Many female stars attempt to capture her look or are strongly inspired by it.  Need I name some?  I’m sure you know.  Madonna, Lindsay Lohan, Megan Fox, Anna Nicole Smith, you get the picture.

She’s got at least one good song about her at least  inspired by her.  Know Elton John’s song Candle in the Wind?  It was originally written in 1973 about Marilyn.

And of course Andy Warhol painted his famous images of Marilyn Monroe.

Why?  It wasn’t just because she was beautiful and died tragically (not to mention the conspiracy theories her death spawned) at the age of 36, although that in itself might be enough to develop a cult following.  She didn’t let a hard early life stop her from becoming successful.  And seriously how many successful model, actress, singers are there? And of course she wasn’t just a dumb blonde.

What do you think about Marilyn Monroe and her influence today?

Kagehime

Born Vickie Lynn Hogan on November 28, 1967, in Mexia, Texas, Anna Nicole Smith rose to fame as a model for Guess jeans and for Playboy magazine. She was even named Playboy’s Playmate of the Year in 1993. The curvy blonde has also appeared in a few films, such as Naked Gun 33 1/3 and The Hudsucker Proxy, both in 1994.

Welcome to the Daily Gossip: your daily stop-off to find out who in the world of music has been up to what.

Today’s top gossip:

Robbie Williams has revealed details of his “drugs hell”, admitting that he once even tried heroin. The singer, back after a three-year hiatus, says he started taking Class A drugs when he was a teenager (and before Take That started releasing music). He said he has had addiction problems with everything from LSD and speed to cocaine and ecstasy.

“When I started going clubbing at 16 we were on acid. The acid and speed. Then it progressed into cocaine. Before the acid, heroin. I did that once,” he admitted.

Williams also revealed that in the last five years he has suffered from the “American addiction” – meaning prescription drugs such as Adderall and Vicodin, although he’s now clean. He added that at one point he feared he would end up dying from an overdose of the drugs, like other high-profile stars. “I was on my way out. It wasn’t the best period of my life. You see Anna Nicole Smith goes off – pills. Michael Jackson goes off – pills. And Heath Ledger. I can relate to all of that” (The Sun).

From the papers:

Madonna is buying her boyfriend Jesus Luz a £1.7 million house in New York (The Sun).

John Lydon seems to have slight regrets about becoming the face of Country Life butter. Asked if he’s proud of featuring in the advertising campaign, he said, “If I’m gonna be held up for heart disease in the future, certainly not” (The Independent).

The Beautiful South’s Paul Heaton was forced to hand back an amateur football medal after his Sunday league side – the brilliantly named Hardley Athletic – were punished by officials for fielding a semi-professional player under a false name. “We didn’t do this deliberately, however it might look,” a club spokesperson said (The Sun).

Empire Of The Sun and frontman Luke Steele is moving to New York because of the success he’s had after appearing on Jay Z’s new album (Daily Star).

Adele has moved back in with her mum (The Sun).