Thursday marked the five-year anniversary since 7-year-old Patrick Alford went missing. Alford, who was living in a Brooklyn foster home, was last seen on Jan. 22, 2010 at about 9 p.m. near 130 Vandalia Avenue. He was wearing a red T-shirt, blue jeans, and black and blue Air Jordan sneakers. The NYPD is still searching for the small boy, and took to the streets to tell residents some key facts  about him, in hopes that someone may provide new information on the case.

“We’re hoping we can use the anniversary of the day to shake the tree, as they say, and maybe find new information, wipe off the cobwebs of what happened that day,” wrote NYPD’s Missing Person Squad Commander Lt. Christopher Zimmerman in his New York Daily News guest column.

“His age alone draws our attention because we view him as vulnerable,” he continued. “Most of us in policing, especially in missing persons cases, know that not only is there a humane effort to find this person, but we understand the significant threat of someone that young becoming a target of a predatory type.”

Zimmerman said that he and other authorities are emotionally attached to Alford’s case because he reminds them of their own children and how heartbreaking it would be if their child turned up missing.

“We feel for this kid. And I’m a parent; it’s a horrible thing to be a parent wondering if your child went missing and where they are.

“He doesn’t have to be my own son for me to care. I want to find him healthy, protect him, and put him in a safe home.”

Zimmerman urges anyone who has information on Aflord to tell the police. “People may have seen or heard something that they don’t think is important,” he wrote. “They don’t realize if you talk to police, we have the whole puzzle in front of us. They could have the missing piece.”

If you know anything about Patrick Alford’s whereabouts or his disappearance, please call (800) 577-TIPS.

This week in celeb quotes, Jill Scott admits to giving a former beau an ultimatum about marriage, Amber Rose has words for those hating on her NSFW Instagram images, and Ben Carson throws President Obama a fist full of shade on MLK Day. Plus, Dawn Richard explains why she punched former bandmate Aubrey O’Day. And Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson said what?! AND I QUOTE…

“I did put pressure on someone to get married. An ultimatum. I did that. It was whack. It was a terrible, terrible decision. I said if it doesn’t happen by New Year’s Eve, it’s over. I was asked on December 30.”

Jill Scott speaking on her experience with pressuring a guy to marry her, while on a promo tour for the new movie With This Ring, via The Today Show.

Source

“I literally crushed my #WCW so much I created a new #WCW”

Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson confirming that his girlfriend is expecting his fifth child, via Twitter.

“This is the court of public opinion and this is my show and that n*gga did it. The proof is common sense for Christ sake. We don’t have to turn off our brain because the law says we’re not supposed to make assumptions.”

Larry Wilmore blasting Bill Cosby over rape allegations, via “The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore.”

Source

“Everybody gets pushed to the limit. I have been very good about holding my ground. I had a role to play in this group, everybody did. When something is poisoning you go into the studio, and people are literally going behind your back and lying to you, and taking your vocals and doing things that are shady, that’s foul.”

Dawn Richard explaining why she physically assaulted former band member Aubrey O’Day, in an interview with Power 105.1’s “The Breakfast Club.”

Source 

“People say there probably won’t be another black president in our lifetime because of all the things that have happened under the first one. But my answer to that is, isn’t he half white?”

Dr. Ben Carson reminding everyone that President Obama is biracial, during a Martin Luther King Jr. Day special on C-Span.

Source

“[Laughing] No that’s in the past. He’s got a tall drink of this (touches herself seductively) ooh wait! Let me stop! [Laughs again]”

Christina Milian addressing rumors of a secret romance with rapper Lil’ Wayne, on Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live.”

Source

“Omg ur a Mother put some clothes on” ……. Kiss my MILFY ass b**ches”

Amber Rose lashing out at those that criticized her recent NSFW images, via Instagram.

Photo: Shutterstock
“Bad girls ain’t no good, and good girls ain’t no fun”
-Wale

So what’s the solution? Be yourself and do you!

There are so many questions about relationships – when to, how to, what if, how do you know, when it is time, how long before, etc…. and just as many answers. Over my 40+ years, a marriage, a divorce, a 20 year old son, multiple long-term and short-term relationships, etc. there are a few things I have learned and even more that I have no clue about. Here are some of the questions, and an attempt at some answers.

Q. When do you have sex when you are just starting a new relationship?
A. I have no idea. Everyone has a different philosophy from the “90 day rule”, “no sex before monogamy”, etc. My experience has been that the men I am attracted to are not going to be monogamous until after we have sex. Another reality to consider is that after “90 days”, if it’s not happening when it finally happens (and you know what I mean), it’s really awkward to back peddle.

Q. Who should you go to for advice?
A. If you’re a woman, stop talking to your girlfriends, they are clueless. Ask a man. If you are a man, stop talking to your buddies, they are clueless. Ask a woman. It’s amazing how much we really don’t understand about each other and even more amazing that we keep seeking the same advice and expecting a different result.

Q. Texting, Calling, Emailing, how does it all work?
A. I believe a woman should let the man initiate communication and be patient. Just because he hasn’t called doesn’t mean he’s not thinking about you. Hopefully he has a job and other things on his mind and his plate. If “he’s into you” he’ll reach out; I promise…and if he’s not, honor yourself and keep it moving – someone else will be.

Q. How to Be?
A. If you want an Alpha male, then you have to be a woman, not the boss, and not his mother. If you want a smart, independent woman then you need to man up, be decisive, adoring, and kind. You have to take care of each other, honor each other, and listen to each other. Respect is key for both of you.

Good luck!! Love and Respect,
Wendy Credle

Wendy is an entertainment lawyer and founder of the executive coaching & education company, Spanda Coaching. Follow her on twitter @IamWendyCredle or www.spandacoaching.com

After over 20 years since recording the groundbreaking 1994 Hip Hop classic, Illmatic, Nasir Jones is still in the game. At 41, Nas, as is his performance name, has come a long way since his first album and has since added businessman and activist to his list of titles. Nas spoke with GQ, in December for the February 2015 issue, to discuss Kelis, other rappers’ reactions to America’s police brutality problem, growing older, and whether he’ll retire.

When asked about whether he is surprised that police officers killing innocent people is still a major issue in the country, Nas says he’s “not surprised.” But regarding rappers and other entertainers’ response to the problem, Nas says that “people are scared.”

“It’s not an easy thing to deal with,” he says.  “… It’s not a rapper thing, it’s a people thing. It’s the NBA’s concern. They have kids. They could be in their car and be profiled. So of course we’re going to speak up. It’s a shame that people want us to stay in the corner and just get kicked in the ribs and just say, ‘Okay, kick me some more, kick me some more…’ People are scared.”

[Image: GQ/Pari Dukovic]

Nas, along with Russel Simmons, protested the non-indictment of former NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo, the man who choked unarmed Eric Garner to death. When asked if he considers himself an activist, the rapper labeled himself as such, but said that others need to put effort toward making changes, too, before the system can evolve.

“I’m waiting for people to stop being scared,” said the artist. “Mainly whites in power and in government, to not be scared of the race issue. Not be scared to say, ‘This is wrong, and this has to change.’ Not be scared to do what’s right.”

Though Nas has taken part in activism, he is still an active rapper. His last album, entitled Life Is Good, was released in 2012. On the album cover, he posed with his ex-wife, Kelis’ wedding dress. When asked if he would have made the same album cover at the age of 20, he admitted that a younger Nas would have put an interesting twist on the photo.

“I would’ve took it to another level,” he said. “I’d have had an imitation of her—someone who looked like her in the dress. I would’ve went way further with it. That’s why the younger generation needs to never be afraid to go all the way. Because I wasn’t afraid.”

The hip hop legend says that while he’s “slowed down” in his mature years and does consider retirement “from time to time,” he has no plans of taking an indefinite rest from working any time soon.

“Now I think about Silicon Valley, I think about Napa Valley,” Nas expressed. “I think about business and relaxing. Not too much—relax too much, you die.”

Read the entire GQ interview here.

Nine-year-old twin boys were left alone in their New Hampshire apartment for nearly four months, after their parents went to visit Nigeria with their three other children.

The uncle of the two boys, Giobari Atura, was asked to watch them while the parents were away, but failed to do so. He also did not drop off food every couple of days as promised, leaving them with almost nothing to eat. According to reports, the parents were supposed to leave in July, and return in August, but were delayed due to illness and passport issues. Atura was charged with endangering the welfare of a child back in December, but was freed on $500 bond.

Authorities revealed that they checked on the situation in November, and discovered the twins had no edible food to eat, except ramen noodles in the cabinet. For the four months their parents were gone, they were able to get themselves up and onto the school bus, as well as eat their breakfast and lunch at the school. When police discovered their situation, they were immediately put into foster care. Even stranger, is that Atura claimed to have visited them every three days after work, and alerted the boys to call if they needed anything, but there was no operable phone located in the apartment.

A police affidavit revealed that one of the boys said “he felt lonely while staying at their own house because his mom and dad were not there and nobody was with them.” The parents told the authorities during questioning that they told Atura to stay at the apartment, and to let a family friend know if he was unable. When they called him throughout the time they were away, he told them everything was fine.

There’s no information about whether the parents have returned from Nigeria, or if they will be charged.

Source

With all fashion shows that the world has seen over the years, it’s getting harder to drop jaws these days, but Rick Owens managed to do so. During his menswear runway show in Paris yesterday, the fashion designer had attendees in shock as four of his male models took the catwalk, giving the audience a peak at their penises.

They were exposed through a peep-hole in the line’s draping shirt, which came in a couple of dark colors. As the audience was filled with giggles and some whispers over the scandalous looks, Owens was made into an official hashtag on social media, #DickOwens. While nudity has become more common at fashion shows, this is one of the first times male genitalia has been exposed on the runway as part of a model’s ensemble.

The Guardian reports that the models were made aware of their exposing outfits ahead of time, and one of them told the site, “It was not a thing at all. I just noticed it when I looked at the photo board and saw that there were cocks hanging about. Ha!” If style-seekers were unaware of Owens’ name before this, it’s clear he won’t be forgotten now.

This isn’t the first time Owens has done something buzzworthy during one of his shows, as he included a step show into his Spring/Summer 2014 show during Paris Fashion Week in September 2013.

Ten former McDonald’s workers out of Virginia are suing the fast-food chain for racial discrimination.  The plaintiffs, nine Blacks and one Hispanic, filed a federal civil rights suit on Thursday. The former employees, who come from three different restaurant locations, say they were all fired last May after the store manager said they “need to get the ghetto out of the store.”

“All of a sudden, they let me go, for no other reason than I ‘didn’t fit the profile’ they wanted at the store,” Willie Betts, who worked as a cook at one of the McDonald’s restaurants, explained in a statement. “I had no idea what they meant by the ‘right profile’ until I saw everyone else that they fired as well.”

A total of 17 minorities were fired from the three McDonald’s stores in May 2014. The accusers claim the high-ranking managers would call black employees “ghetto” and “ratchet,” and even referred to one location as the “ghetto store.”

The former employees said things started going south in late 2013 when Mike Simon, a black man, became the owner of the three locations in question.  The plaintiffs say that Simon created a plan to remove black and Hispanic workers and hire more whites.   The suit states that one supervisor even said “now we can get rid of the n*ggers and the Mexicans.”

“We asked McDonald’s corporate to help us get our jobs back, but the company told us to take our concerns to the franchisee – the same franchisee that just fired us,”  plaintiff Pamela Marable, who was one of the workers terminated in May, said via a statement. “McDonald’s closely monitors everything we do, from the speed of the drive-through line, to the way we smile and fold customers’ bags – but when we try to tell the company that we’re facing discrimination, they ignore us and say that it’s not their problem.”

Simon made a statement defending the corporation in May, stating “my organization has a strict policy of prohibiting any form of discrimination or harassment in hiring, termination or any other aspect of employment.”

McDonald’s released a statement Thursday in response to the lawsuit and said they will “review the matter carefully.”

The NAACP is now on the plaintiffs’ side. Rev. Kevin Chandler, president of the South Boston Chapter of the NAACP and vice president of the NAACP Virginia State Conference, made a statement declaring the organization’s backing of the terminated group.

“The treatment of these McDonald’s workers seems like it’s out of another era, but sadly the racism is a reality they are confronting today,” said Chandler. “The South Boston NAACP will stand with these fired workers until McDonald’s takes responsibility for the inhumane treatment these workers faced in its stores.”

Houston rapper Doughbeezy was nearly killed when he went to a friend’s house in his city, where a home invasion was occurring. One of the invaders pistol-whipped the hip-hop star, also known by his real name Tai Carr, when he walked through the door. Doughbreezy grabbed his gun from his vehicle’s trunk outside.

He recalled the scenario on a deleted post to his Instagram, along with a photo of his injuries, but stopped short after grabbing his gun.

According to My Fox Houston, police revealed that an unidentified victim, who is believed to be Doughbeezy, took a gun out of his car, and shot down one of the home invaders. For now, the rapper is recovering at home, and has asked for privacy during this time. A representative for Doughbreezy revealed that he won’t be doing any interviews on the matter, but a member of the Houston Police Department said the case will go before a Harris County grand jury, “as a result of the deadly shooting.”

While details are still scarce, authorities did take one man into custody, a 23-year-old named Marquez Romero Heckard, after finding him at a nearby Wendy’s restaurant.

Another famous Houston rapper, Paul Wall, spoke out about his friend Doughbeezy after the incident, telling FOX 26 News, “I definitely see Doughbeezy as a hero.”

Source

Kanye West has finally answered one of the most frequently asked questions about himself– why doesn’t ‘Ye ever smile? Whenever Mr. West is photographed by the paparazzi, the man is scowling. No LOL or smiley face in sight. Even when he’s running the town with wife Kim Kardashian or baby North West, there doesn’t seem to be any joy in his face. What’s the matter Kanye?

During the Daily Front Row‘s inaugural Fashion Los Angeles Award show this past week, Kanye took the stage to present an award to one of his greatest inspirations, Milk Studios founder Mazdack Rassi. In his impassioned speech he explains why he keeps a mean mug for the camera saying,

“Back when I was working on Yeezus, I saw this book from the 1800s and it was velvet-covered with brass and everything… I looked at all these people’s photos and they look so real and their outfits were incredible and they weren’t smiling and people, you know the paparazzi, always come up to me, ‘Why you not smiling?’ and I think, not smiling makes me smile…When you see paintings in an old castle, people are not smiling cause it just wouldn’t look as cool.”

Well there you have it folks. Kanye doesn’t smile because smiling isn’t cool.

Femcee Eve and soul singer Jill Scott have been on the road promoting their new LIFETIME flick With This Ring. The ladies stopped by Shade 45 for Sway Calloway’s radio show and discussed the current hot topic regarding cultural appropriation in hip hop — i.e Iggy Azalea and her place in the culture.

With Eve being an artist who changed the game for female rappers, it’s interesting to hear her take on the backlash Iggy has received. When asked her thoughts on what people are calling the “whitewashing of hip hop” because of artists like Azealia, Eve had this to say,

“I get that people may be upset about certain things.  Yeah she’s white.  But they grew up with our sh**…   Hip hop is everywhere.  Every neighborhood, every country, every city and it didn’t just hit.  Yes, it’s from us and it’s our thing… She’s representing a group of girls right now as well…  I think people right now are too quick to give too many accolades to new people.  That’s the one thing I just can’t stand… Let her do her thing you know it’s not my cup of tea but she’s representing for somebody. She’s doing her  thing.”

Some of the “accolades” Iggy has received that Eve may be referring to is the Australian rapper being crowned by mainstream media as the “Queen of Hip Hop”, her recent Grammy nod for Best Hip Hop album, and any other Best Rap category she has won this past year.

Jill Scott also offered her two cents on the matter saying,

“It’s a little challenging for me because I come from the era that she pulls from…  To me, it’s like a mixture of  Da Brat and Eve the way that it sounds.  So that’s a little challenging to me.  But I’m a mixture of Sarah Vaughan and five other things.  So somebody else that comes from that era, they looking at me like… she alright.  So that has been the only thing that stops me, because I know where that comes from… It sounds like a big bite to me.”

Eve went on to say,

“The tone, the blaccent.  Is that horrible?  A lot of people gonna get mad at that, say what you want, but f*** it.  I’m saying it in a sense that she’s from a different place. I’ve said this before, it would be dope to hear her with her swag, what are you, who are you and what is that?  That’s the only reason I say that… I think she’s fly, I think she’s good to look at, I think she’s a pretty girl, she has a dope body.  All of that is fine.  I just wish there was a little bit more of where she came from.”

Watch the full interview and hear more of what Eve and Jill Scott had to say on the next page.

The wait is over! Rihanna’s navy has been impatiently waiting for new music from the hit-maker since her latest album Unapologetic, which was released back in  2012.  Finally Rih stans have something new to listen to — thanks Rih. Rihanna has teamed up with Kanye West and Paul McCartney for an acoustic banger entitled “FourFiveSeconds”. The little over 3-minute track also features Ty Dolla $ign and the Dirty Projectors’ Dave Longsreth.

Early this year, the “Paranoid” singer Ty Dolla mentioned to Billboard magazine that he was working on a secret project with Rihanna, Kanye and Paul McCartney. Just last week, during the iHeartMedia Music Summit, Yeezus confirmed this project by offering a snippet of the track just to prove its existence. Rihanna officially shared her new single on Saturday when she posted a link to the song.

FIRST GLIMPSE AT MY NEW MUSIC!!!—> http://t.co/8bsJSvxVp6

— Rihanna (@rihanna) January 25, 2015

Of course the internet pretty much imploded when news of the new track reached the navy. Clearly the game has been missing new tunes from the Bajan queen.

With Rihanna’s eighth studio album slated to be released early this year, “FourFiveSeconds” is the perfect teaser to hype up the highly anticipated new project. This new album will be Rihanna’s first project under her own label “Westbury Road Entertainment” and marks her first project since departing Island Def Jam — congrats girl!

Can’t wait to listen to her new track? Get the new song here.

Rumors have been swirling that Amber Rose and Nick Cannon are a lot more than friends. After both parties announced their divorce from their famous spouses, word got out that the two of them were hooking up.  Never one to  run away from truth, Amber Rose is finally clearing the air about her alleged relationship with Mariah’s ex-hubby.

After pretty much shutting down the net with her sexy bikini pics, Amber is making headlines once again with her latest update. The model turned celebrity-socialite posted a photo of herself and Nick Cannon posing in front of their matching Ferraris. The caption reads, “U guys like me and @nickcannon’s matching Ferraris?#HisandHers #Ncredible”.

Obviously folks jumped to conclusions once they saw the above photo. Is this their way of confirming a Nick + Amber relationship? Not long after posting the matching Ferrari pic, Amber had to set the record straight and posted the following message to her Instagram account,

“Shout out to my Amazing Manager @nickcannon!  I know the world wants us to be together sooo badly (Sarcasm) but it’s just not our relationship.  Every time I post a pic of me and this Man yall start reaching…We are friends and business partners nothing more. We have beautiful children and ppl we still love very much no matter what. I don’t know how many times I need to say this but this will be my last time.  WE ARE JUST FRIENDS!!!! OK f***ers? I usually don’t even comment on dumb made up stories but ur gonna see a lot of us together cuz we’re getting this Shmoney….Cuz he’s my manager! Duh.  So fall the f*** back and chill the f*** out- Muva.”

There you have it. According to Ms. Rose, their relationship is strictly business — at least for now. Time will only tell if anything more romantic develops between the two. Either way, we’ll be watching.

The 2015 Screen Actors Guild Awards red carpet were filled with some of the most fabulous Hollywood starlets in the game. This year television and film’s brightest brought their A-game and looked better than ever as they strut their gowns on the carpet.  If you missed the live red carpet broadcast and all the fashion, don’t worry we’ve got you covered.

Check out our gallery from the red carpet at the 2015 SAG Awards. Let us know which looks you loved.

Viola Davis


Lupita Nyong’o


Rashida Jones


Camilla Alves


Dashca Polanco


Uzo Aduba


Laverne Cox


Laverne Cox and Danielle Brooks


Shaun Robinson

Since Cadbury’s premiered the “Cadbury Bunny Tryouts” commercial in 1994, it has signified the arrival of spring (at least on American TV). But not this year, because real Cadbury’s chocolate will no longer be available stateside — and you have Hershey’s to “thank” for that.

Under a settlement with Hershey’s Company, Let’s Buy British Imports, or L.B.B., agreed to stop importing all Cadbury’s chocolates that were manufactured overseas to the United States. L.B.B. will also cease importing Kit Kats made in Britain; Toffee Crisps, whose packaging resembles Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups; and Yorkie chocolate bars, which infringe on the York Peppermint Pattie.

Hershey’s representative Jeff Beckman said L.B.B. and others were infringing on Hershey’s trademark and trade dress licensing, by importing products that weren’t intended for sale in the U.S., according to the New York Times.

However, all isn’t lost for Cadbury’s chocolate lovers …

Hershey’s actually has a licensing deal to manufacture and sell Cadbury’s chocolate in the United States with similar packaging used overseas. But it uses a different recipe and therefore doesn’t taste the same to Britons and British-chocolate lovers.

Britain-made chocolate has a higher fat content. The first ingredient is milk in a British Cadbury Dairy Milk (plain milk chocolate), whereas the first ingredient in American-made Cadbury’s bar is sugar. Another difference between the two types of chocolate is the use of PGPR and soy lecithin to give American Cadbury bars a longer shelf life. British Cadbury bars include vegetable fats and different emulsifiers.

Ain’t nothing like a theme birthday party, and Swizz Beatz might just have won the award for best theme in Black pop culture. Saturday, he threw wife Alicia Keys a pajama party based on House Party 2. And even better, Swizz got the original cast to reunite.

Kid ‘n’ Play performed alongside Tisha Campbell-Martin and AJ Johnson. This was the first time the four stars, including Christopher “Kid” Reid and Christopher “Play” Martin, reunited since the premiere of House Party. Although, Johnson didn’t appear in the sequel, the cast didn’t skip a beat when it came to recreating the iconic dance battle scene from the original film.

Keep clicking to the see the performance videos …

[Images: Instagram]

Of course, we couldn’t help revisiting the original scene of Kid ‘n’ Play battling Sidney (Campbell-Martin) and Sharane (Johnson) on the House Party dance floor.

The stress and anger caused after being terminated from a job can be taxing.  At the start of the week, two men at two different companies committed suicide. Both tragedies occurred down the street from one another in Manhattan.

A Fox News employee took his own life Monday morning after claiming he had just been fired. He’d posted over social media that he was experiencing workplace bullying.

Just before 9 a.m., 41-year-old Phillip Perea began handing out flyers outside of the News Corporation building in Manhattan which stated that a Fox employer “ended my career.”  He then shot himself in the chest. Perea was rushed to Bellevue Hospital Center, but was announced dead around an hour later, according to officials.

Perea had complained via social media about his job at FOX 7-KTBC in Austin, Texas.  He wrote on Twitter about an hour before he took his own life that he was being bullied, and he had also recorded an 8 minute video on Youtube about his workplace misery.

Fox Television Stations CEO Jack Abernethy released a message to employees Monday informing them of the tragic suicide.

“This morning, a former employee at FOX 7-KTBC (Austin) committed suicide outside FOX Television Stations’ headquarters in New York City,” said Abernethy. “He was employed at our Austin television station for ten months and has not been with the station or FTS since June 2014. We are deeply saddened by this tragedy.”

Just one day earlier, a former Home Depot employee also decided to shoot himself in Manhattan, but the gunman also killed a supervisor.

The man who turned the gun on himself was Calvin ‘Kirk’ Esdaile, Jr of Brooklyn.  At around 2:45 p.m., the 31-year-old was speaking with a former employee inside of a busy Home Depot in the Chelsea neighborhood when he saw a supervisor.  Customers reportedly heard arguing, and then around “4 or 5 shots” rang out.  Esdaile had shot Moctar Sy, 38, in the chest and abdomen.  He then shot himself in the head.

Esdaile was dead on the scene, while the supervisor, like Perea, was taken to Bellevue hospital and was soon pronounced dead. One Bronx resident says that he was in the aisle next to the lighting department where the shooting took place, and he heard that the shooter was unhappy about being fired.

“From what I’m hearing from employees, it was a disgruntled worker who came to shoot his supervisor after he got fired,” the man told NY Daily News.

Esdaile was from Jamaica and has one son. The victim had reportedly just returned from France to visit his wife and child.

A new study is challenging the beliefs around pregnant women and fish consumption. Although there have always been concerns about mercury levels in fish, it has been found that there are many benefits to eating fish while pregnant.

The University of Rochester in New York, Ulster University in Belfast, and The Republic of Seychelles Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education partnered to conduct the Seychelles Child Development Study. People who live in Seychelles, islands in the Indian Ocean, eat about ten times the amount of fish as people in the U.S. and Europe. Researchers felt this population would be perfect to help understand how consistent mercury exposure over time might affect health.

Over 1,500 mothers and children participated in the study. The development of the children was evaluated using a variety of conduct, communication skills, and motor aptitude tests. Hair specimens were also taken from the mothers in order to gauge pre-birth mercury levels.

[Image: Shutterstock]

Pre-birth mercury levels were not indicative of lower test scores. One of the benefits of fish consumption while pregnant is that it promotes proper fetal development. Fish is rich in Omega-3 fatty acids, which are crucial for proper development of the nervous system and brain. Pregnant women who consume fish also lower their risk of preterm birth and lower birth weight.

Still, the FDA recommends that pregnant women eat fish no more than two times a week.

Philip Davidson, PhD, lead investigator of the Seychelles study and professor emeritus at the University of Rochester said:

“It seems that the relationship between fish nutrients and mercury may be far more intricate than formerly appreciated. These discoveries show that there may be an ideal harmony between the different inflammatory properties of fatty acids that promote fetal development and that these systems warrant further study.”

Source

The death of Joan Rivers hit Hollywood pretty hard, especially fashion insiders who were fans of her hosting skills on Fashion Police. The comedian passed away after complications from throat surgery at an NYC clinic, devastating her family, including daughter Melissa Rivers.

Since then, her daughter has had to decide what action to take in light of her mother’s death, and she’s finally filed a lawsuit against the clinic in the Big Apple. It was “one of the most difficult decisions I’ve ever had to make,” Melissa said in a released statement on the matter.

She continued, “What ultimately guided me was my unwavering belief that no family should ever have to go through what my mother, [my son] Cooper and I have been through. The level of medical mismanagement, incompetency, disrespect, and outrageous behavior is shocking and frankly, almost incomprehensible. Not only did my mother deserve better, every patient deserves better. It is my goal to make sure that this kind of horrific medical treatment never happens to anyone again.”

The complications from the surgery, which were ruled as mistakes made by Joan’s personal doctor and the clinic’s staff, resulted in Joan having irreversible brain damage. She died a just week after the surgery back in August of 2014.

Source: People

Hot off the success of Selma, Ava DuVernay has another film in the works. Her Civil Rights-era biopic has made close to $40 million at the box office, and earned a Best Picture nomination from the Academy. The director will now turn her lens on the New Orleans bayou, with a feature film about 2005’s Hurricane Katrina.

The film is set to be a love story and murder mystery, using the tragic hurricane as a backdrop. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the project will be written, produced and directed by DuVernay.

“The story we’re interested in will explore the complexities of intimate relationships within times of chaos, while also examining the chaos itself. I’m looking forward to the journey,” she said.

David Oyelowo, whose portrayal of Dr. Martin Luther King in Selma was arguably Oscar-worthy, is in talks to produce and star in the as-yet-untitled project. This will be the third time he and DuVernay have worked together. Oyelowo also starred in her directorial debut Middle of Nowhere, which garnered a Best Director award at the Sundance Film Festival in 2012.

DuVernay will also be teaming up with Participant Media, who worked with her on Middle of Nowhere. “Ava DuVernay has shown herself to be highly skilled at bringing intimacy and contemporary urgency to epic events. We have been looking for the right way to get back in business with Ava, and with David Oyelowo, and are proud to reteam with them on her original idea, which we believe will be a powerful film,” said Participant’s Jonathan King, who’ll executive produce the film.

A release date has not been set.

“A man who finds a wife, finds a good thing,” according to the book of Proverbs. And thanks to WeTV‘s new reality dating series Match Made in Heaven, millionaire Shawn Bullard is on a quest to find love, but this time a pastor is calling the shots.

Bullard, an African-American real-estate magnate and former college athlete will look for love with help from the Man Upstairs, or at least someone close to him, like Pastor Ken Johnson, spiritual advisor to the Indianapolis Colts. Pastor Johnson guides the suave bachelor as he picks and chooses between 24 beauties vying for his love and affection, and ultimately a happily ever after. But the pastor isn’t the only one with an opinion. Bullard’s outspoken mother, lovingly dubbed Mama Bullard, moves in, having a say on who could potentially be her daughter-in-law. 

Though he’s been deemed the “first black bachelor” by many, some reality TV scholars might argue that Flavor Flav, Ray J and Chad Ochocinco Johnson beat Bullard to the punch. Each starred in his own VH1 series in search of love, or at least affection.

Through a series of romantic dates, intimate rendezvous and catfights, will Bullard find his true match made in heaven?

Check out the super trailer:

The show premieres on Wednesday, February 4 at 8 p.m. EST on WeTV. Will you tune in?