Michael Jackson Doctor Conrad Murray Didn't Seem To Know CPR, Bodyguard Testifies

Jackson's two oldest children were in bedroom witnessing drama, bodyguard Faheem Muhammed said.
By Gil Kaufman


Conrad Murray (file)
Photo: AFP/ Getty Images

One of the most shocking revelations to emerge from the first day of testimony in the pretrial hearing of former Michael Jackson doctor Conrad Murray is that as the pop icon lay dying in his rented Los Angeles mansion, cardiologist Murray asked in a panic, "Does anyone know CPR?"

According to CNN, that's what bodyguard Faheem Muhammed said on the stand. Tuesday was the first day of testimony in hearings aimed at determining whether there is enough evidence to try Murray on a felony count of involuntary manslaughter in the June 2009 death of the King of Pop.

The hearing is slated to last around two weeks and feature 20 to 30 witnesses, most of whom will be medical professionals. But it was the shocking testimony of Muhammed on Tuesday that grabbed headlines. He said that he and fellow guard Alberto Alvarez walked in on a scene in which Murray was crouched next to the motionless body of Jackson and it appeared that the heart surgeon did not know how to give CPR.

As they waited for paramedics to arrive, Muhammed said Murray stood next to Jackson's bed and asked in a panicked voice if anyone else in the room knew how to administer the life-saving technique.

"I looked at Alberto because we knew Dr. Murray was a heart surgeon, so we were shocked," Muhammed said. When defense attorney Ed Chernoff asked whether Murray was asking for help because he was exhausted after staying up all night administering sleep aids to the chronically insomniac Jackson, Muhammed replied, "The way that he asked it is as if he didn't know CPR." He also said that he never witnessed Murray performing CPR on Jackson before paramedics arrived and that the singer's two oldest children, Prince Michael and Paris, were in their father's bedroom as the drama was unfolding. Among the Jackson family members in court on Tuesday to watch the proceedings were family matriarch Katherine, sister LaToya and brothers Randy and Jackie.

Prosecutor David Walgren referred to Murray's use of "ineffectual" CPR, which included using one hand while Jackson was on a soft bed, which is counter to recommended techniques. Walgren also told the judge in the case that medical experts would testify that Murray took "a number of actions" that "showed an extreme deviation from the standard of care," after being hired to serve as Jackson's personal physician in the lead-up to a series of comeback shows in England.

The prosecutor also claimed that Murray waited at least 21 minutes to call an ambulance after he found Jackson unresponsive. "By all accounts, Michael Jackson was dead in the bedroom at 100 North Carolwood prior to the paramedics' arrival," Walgren said. The Los Angeles County coroner later determined that the singer died of "acute propofol intoxication," saying the overdose of the surgical anesthetic and the combined effects of other sedatives caused his death.

Chernoff has said that Murray administered propofol and other sedatives to Jackson in the hours before the pop star's death, but not in quantities that "should have" caused his death. CNN reported that Murray's defense team hinted that it would argue that Jackson was facing intense pressure over his upcoming 50-date This Is It comeback series of shows at London's O2 Arena and that led to his demands for treatment to help his chronic insomnia.

Also testifying on Tuesday was the director of the shows, Kenny Ortega, who described Jackson as "involved, active, participating" at his final rehearsal, which ended 12 hours before his death. That was very different from the out-of-it singer who could barely make it through rehearsals on June 19, six nights before his death. At a meeting called after Ortega sent Jackson home that night for some rest, the director described a scene in which Murray scolded him for cutting the rehearsal short.

"Dr. Murray told me that this was not my responsibility, and he asked me not to act like a doctor or psychologist," Ortega said. Murray has pleaded not guilty in the case, and according to a recent report, Walgren believes that the doctor's lawyers may claim that Jackson self-administered the final, fatal dose of propofol and essentially killed himself after waking up in a panic from a fitful night of sleep.

Testimony in the case will continue on Wednesday (January 5).

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1655306/michael-jackson-doctor-conrad-murray-cpr.jhtml

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Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Other Stars Make Forbes' Top-Earning Of 2010 List

Taylor Swift, Britney Spears and Miley Cyrus also made the magazine's top 20 list of Hollywood moneymakers.
By Jayson Rodriguez


Beyoncé
Photo: Columbia/Music World

On the East Coast, revenue streams are slowly rising as banks are still cratering and trying to recover from the recession. But out West, money ain't a thing, as Jermaine Dupri and Jay-Z once rapped.

Forbes has released their list of Hollywood's 20 Highest Earners of 2010, with Beyoncé, Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus among those rubbing elbows with the likes of power players like Oprah Winfrey.

The venerable talk-show host topped the list with a whopping $315 million haul. Winfrey's earnings were generated for the most part by her multimedia deals, which include a syndication deal for her TV show, a magazine and her soon-to-be-launched network.

"Avatar" creator James Cameron came in second, more than $100 million behind Winfrey, with a tally of $210 million. Director and playwright Tyler Perry ($125 million), blockbuster movie producer Michael Bay ($120 million) and golfer Tiger Woods ($105 million) rounded out the top five.

Beyoncé was the only pop star to break the top 10. The "Single Ladies" superstar landed at #9, sandwiched between George Lucas and Dr. Phil. Mrs. Carter, whose hubby, Jay-Z, was named Hip-Hop's Cash King by Forbes in August with a tally of $63 million, pulled down $87 million over the past 12 months.

The blond-haired trio of Britney Spears ($64 million), Lady Gaga ($62 million) and Madonna ($58 million) made their mark on the list at numbers 13, 14 and 15, respectively.

Pop tarts Miley Cyrus and Taylor Swift capped the list. The young stars placed at 18 and 19 on the list, with Disney star Cyrus pocketing $48 million, and country singer Swift depositing $45 million into her bank account.

Hollywood's 20 highest-earning men and women of 2010, according to Forbes:

1. Oprah Winfrey, $315 million
2. James Cameron, $210 million
3. Tyler Perry, $125 million
4. Michael Bay, $120 million
5. Tiger Woods, $105 million
6. Jerry Bruckheimer, $100 million
7. Steven Spielberg, $100 million
8. George Lucas, $95 million
9. Beyoncé, $87 million
10. Dr. Phil, $80 million
11. Simon Cowell, $80 million
12. Jerry Seinfeld, $75 million
13. Britney Spears, $64 million
14. Lady Gaga, $62 million
15. Madonna, $58 million
16. Sandra Bullock, $56 million
17. Ellen DeGeneres, $55 million
18. Miley Cyrus, $48 million
19. Taylor Swift, $45 million
20. Judge Judy Sheindlin, $45 million

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1654947/lady-gaga-beyonce-other-stars-make-forbes-topearning-2010-list.jhtml

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Flyers-Senators Line Brawl (Video)

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There was some old-time Broad Street hockey in Philadelphia on Thursday night as the Flyers not only welcomed back Chris Pronger in their dominating 6-2 win over the Ottawa Senators, increasing their Eastern Conference lead, they also took part in some fisticuffs. The two teams combined for 126 penalty minutes, most of which came in the third period as the result of a number of fights. The biggest bout was a line brawl with just under five minutes to play in regulation that included Philadelphia's Scott Hartnell, Jody Shelley and Sean O'Donnell throwing down against Ottawa's Jarkko Ruutu, Matt Carkner and Chris Neil.

Here's the video...

 

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Source: http://nhl.fanhouse.com/2011/01/21/flyers-senators-line-brawl-video/

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James Franco Takes Dramatic Look At '70s Series 'Three's Company'

Franco had a unique way of introducing his film at the Sundance Film Festival.
By Terri Schwartz


James Franco
Photo: Dimitrios Kambouris/ WireImage

PARK CITY, Utah — James Franco is nothing if not ambitious. The 32-year-old actor is balancing several upcoming film roles, a teaching gig at Yale and the likelihood of being nominated for his first Oscar with a new meta-art piece at the Sundance Film Festival. Franco's "Three's Company: A Drama" premiered in the New Frontier program of the fest in an attempt to, in Sundance's words, view the 1970s sitcom from "a slightly oblique perspective."

So Franco decided to re-create the first three episodes of "Three's Company" at Sundance, sans the laugh track, and play it up for its dramatic value. His film was then projected up onto four screens in the theater so that it surrounds the audience. To add to the effect, Franco re-created the living room set in which so much of "Three's Company" takes place as the theater area where the audience watches the film.

"I was just thinking, back in the day, when people were watching that show, people were probably sitting in their living room watching these other people in their living room, so I thought, let's suck the audience into their living room and then there's projections on all four walls," Franco explained. "And it's not just seeing the show on all four walls. It's like, Chrissy's on this side, and Janet's on this side, and you're in the middle."

New Frontier advertises itself as a program that "explores narrative structure, the three-dimensionality of the cinematic image, and innovations in transmedia storytelling." If the 1970s television series seems like a strange launching pad for such an introspective look at television, you probably wouldn't be more confused watching what Franco came up with than Eliza Dushku and Rick Fox were in this video.

But even though Franco is trying to play his analysis of the sitcom as a serious drama, he isn't taking the entire project without some elements of humor. He donned a Suzanne Somers wig at the installation's afterparty, sang the "Three's Company" theme song during the art exhibit, and then tried to teach MTV News' Josh Horowitz how to improvise the theme song's lyrics to make them as graphic and inappropriate as possible. Let's just say Franco was a bit more imaginative than Horowitz was willing to be in front of the cameras.

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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'No Strings Attached' Director Says 'Friends With Benefits' Can't Last

'It's very easy to have a sexual relationship that lasts for a short while,' Ivan Reitman tells MTV News.
By Kara Warner


Natalie Portman in "No Strings Attached"
Photo: Cold Spring Pictures

Ivan Reitman is not only one of Hollywood's most notable and reputable producers of memorable comedies ("Animal House," "Old School"); he's also directed plenty of them ("Stripes," "Meatballs," "Ghostbusters"), including the upcoming romantic comedy "No Strings Attached," starring Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher.

The fact that Reitman is one of the most memorable players in the business makes him an intriguing, if slightly intimidating, interview subject. However, given Reitman's history with wacky and sometimes raunchy comedy, when MTV News caught up with him recently to discuss "No Strings Attached," we felt it entirely appropriate to ask his thoughts on the idea of "friends with benefits," particularly whether the mythological-sounding "agreement" that has become commonplace in pop culture these days can ever actually work.

"Well, I think it's very easy to have a sexual relationship that lasts for a short while, where there's no kind of responsibility and there's no kind of real ties," Reitman said thoughtfully. "It's been my experience, as somebody who's been married for way more years than I believe, that you can't do that for any real length of time."

Reitman went on to say that although it's a nice idea, we human beings can't help but fall in love at some point, "arrangement" or no.

"It's really the subplot of this movie as well. I think it's as much of a fantasy that we'd all like to think it's possible," he said of the "friends with benefits" idea. "I think it's tough, because we do fall in love, and there's something about the human connection that makes us want to have deeper connections."

Check out everything we've got on "No Strings Attached."

For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.

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Lady Gaga Premieres Born This Way Short Film

Film, starring 'Zombie Boy,' features remixed song and footage from Thierry Mugler fashion show.
By Jocelyn Vena


Lady Gaga (file)
Photo: Kevork Djansezian/ Getty Images

The world may at last have a first glimpse of what Gaga has up her sleeve for Born This Way, thanks to a short film made for designer Thierry Mugler. The film, directed by fashion photographer Mariano Vivanco, is set to the remixed song that Gaga debuted at the Mugler menswear show in Paris on Wednesday.

The black-and-white video, which premiered on Stylist.com and Mugler.com on Thursday (January 20), features Canadian model Rick Genest, also known as Zombie Boy, whose body and face are tattooed to look like a skeleton. It opens with voiceover of Gaga saying, "I don't speak German, but I can if you like," as the camera focuses on Zombie Boy, rocking a studded helmet. Footage of Zombie Boy is edited together with models walking the catwalk in Mugler designs.

Zombie Boy mugs for the camera wearing a leather jacket and pearls while Gaga sings in German, "I'm absolutely clear/ As long as I'm a monster/ I wish we all could be blind/ It would be easier out there." She repeats the phrase and the beat plays low under her anthem.

There is very little pop in the dark, subversive club jam, reminiscent of a '90s club track. The vibe of the video is an extension of her equally fashionable clip for "Alejandro," which was styled by Nicola Formichetti, who happens to be the creative director of Thierry Mugler.

Zombie Boy is later seen walking in a city, wearing street clothes, as Gaga sings in English, "I'll take you out tonight/ Say whatever you like," accompanied by a pulsing beat. The video closes with a model walking down the runway as the song fades out.

Gaga remixed the song herself for the show. "I love him, my friend the genius, my collaborator, more more than any piece of clothing or closet I possess," she said of Formichetti in a statement about the show. "But don't tell him I said that, he'll die. He picked them all out."

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1656313/lady-gaga-premieres-born-this-way-short-film.jhtml

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