Congratulations, Serena Williams, Superstar

The 33-year-old Williams won her sixth Wimbledon on Saturday and 21st Grand Slam overall. With a victory at next month’s U.S. Open, she’d become the third woman in history to win the calendar Slam and also tie Steffi Graf for the most Grand Slam titles of all time.

Williams, who defeated Garbine Muguruza for her 6th Wimbledon finals match, attended the annual dinner at Guidlhall in London with fellow champion Novak Djokovic and his wife. Serena arrived at the lavish event in a hugging floor-length gown which showed off her enviable figure. This comes after Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling jumped to Serena's defense when a Twitter troll said Williams was "built like a man".

Though she may have looked like a princess on Sunday night, when it comes to tennis, Serena is no doubt the queen.

Congratulations and best wishes, Serena Williams, Superstar.

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Paula Deen Cries Foul on "I Love Lucy" Posting

Here's an update to my recent post-Paula Deen At It Again-Yawl Hear?
Paula Deen is trying to distance herself from the Tweet and photo that threatens her image rebuilding campaign.

The tweet was quickly removed and Deen immediately had the picture taken down as soon as she saw the post. She apologies to all who were offended.

The social media manager responsible for the tweet and picture was fired.

Paula has been in business and image building mode since getting a private investor in 2014 funding her efforts to the tune of between $75-$100 million. She's launched a website, the Paula Deen Network, and opened a restaurant with seating for 300 in Pigeon Forge, TN.

Tune in for the next episode in this ongoing saga.

Related Article:

Paula Deen At It Again-Yawl Hear?

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Safety Net For Seniors: Social Security Turns 80

 

This year is Social Security's 80th anniversary, an ideal time to reflect on what this essential program means to us all. Many important facts about this vital program are overlooked in the ongoing nation debate. The program keeps roughly 20 percent of all Americans age 65 and older above the Federally defined poverty level. We must never forget just how vital those benefits are to families all over America.

Social Security helps millions of people of all ages. These include 2.5 million children whose parents have died or retired, 4.1 million spouses of deceased workers, and almost 11 million disabled workers and their dependents. Benefits are modest. Overall, retirement benefits average less than $16,000 a year. About half the beneficiaries, mainly women, get less. These benefits are most or all of the income for more than 1 in 4 older women.

Social Security provides critical support for middle-class retirees. Without it many people who worked their entire lives would struggle to pay bills. People are living longer than ever and those added years cost money. Financial pressures facing boomers and Gen Xers explain why Social Security will continue to play an important through the coming years. Retirement savings are often meager and employer retirement pensions have become scarce. Without the guarantee of Social Security, the poverty rate for older Americans would skyrocket- from 9.5 percent to 42 percent.

The United States can afford to keep Social Security strong, and we must-not only for today's retirees but for young people and future generations. Let's seize on Social Security's 80th anniversary as a time to remember just how important those benefits are to families all over America. Make sure that maintaining Social Security is a part of the national discussion and find out where political candidates stand on this issue.

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Time's 100 Most Influential People: Meet The "Titans"

Last April/May, Time released its annual issue dedicated to persons chosen as the 100 Most Influential People. The Editor offers the magazine’s hope that the list will introduce influential people you might not have met before and encourage you to find out more about them.  In my case, I also found out many new things about people I thought I knew.  Although in many cases the names were familiar and expected, there were many surprises and a wealth of new information. Information excites me and compels me to share it with friends and family.

Let’s start with a clear definition of influence:
Influence: (noun) the capacity or power of persons or things to be a compelling force on or produce effects on the actions, behavior, opinions, etc., of others;  (verb) to move or impel (a person) to some action; (verb) to exercise influence on; affect; sway.

Malala Yousafzai and Beji Caid Essebsi

When you review Time’s list, you’ll find that the youngest person on the list for the third straight year is seventeen year old Malala Yousafzai, Pakistani activist for female education and the youngest-ever Nobel Prize laureate.  Oldest at 88 is Tunisian President Beji  Caid  Essebsi, steward of the Arab world’s youngest democracy. The 100 people on Time’s list were born all over the globe, including Russian President  Vladimir Putin (St. Petersburg, Russia);  Pope Francis (Buenos Aires, Argentina); US Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power (Castleknock, Ireland); and US President Barack Obama (Honolulu, HI).

In this post, we’ll take a look at some of the 18 people identified as “The Titans’ and later, we’ll focus on a few of the 21 persons labeled “The Icons”. In future posts, we’ll  meet  “The Pioneers”, “The Artists”, and “The Leaders”. If you’re anxious and can’t wait a minute longer, you can view the entire list of The 100 Most Influential People on line at Time.com.

Charles Koch-Tim Cook-Kanye West

You would expect a group called “The Titans” to include Apple CEO Tim Cook who runs “the most valuable company on earth” and  Disney CEO Bob Iger who spent $15 billion on Pixar, Lucasfilm and Marvel to transform the company into the world’s largest entertainment venue. Add  Charles and David Koch to the list based on their immense industrial wealth of $100 billion and impactful conservative activism. But, in my wildest dreams did I expect “pop culture juggernaut” and entrepreneur Kanye West and Reality Star Kim Kardashian West nestled among people in this category. 

Lorne Michaels-Chanda Kochhar-Kim Kardashian-Lee Daniels

I rushed to the dictionary and found that a ‘titan” is “a person or thing of enormous size, strength, power, influence, etc.:”, so I guess I’ll have to live with that. You have to read Entrepreneur Elon Musk write about Kanye West’s “long game” as the music superstar moves into the worlds of fashion, design, and philanthropy. Martha Stewart labels Kim Kardashian a media phenomenon with 29 million followers on Instagram and 31 million followers on Twitter. Her reality TV show Keeping Up With the Kardashians is a favorite with a large and diverse audience. For better or worse, you have to admit that some of the younger generation wants to look like Kim, dress like Kim, and imitate Kim in every way possible. I guess that’s influence. You can judge whether her influence is “enormous”.

Mellody Hobson-Janet Yellen-Susan Wojcicki-Elizabeth Holmes

Personally, I could better identify with other female “Titans”, i.e. FED Chair Janet Yellen (leader of the most important central bank in the world), Finance Whiz Mellody Hobson, Tech Visionary and Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes, or You Tube CEO Susan Wojcicki.  ICICI Bank CEO Chanda Kochhar, “a banker with a vision and reach” is the clear image I equate with a “Titan”. Co-Chief Executive Director of Deutsche Bank Anshu Jain says:

“You can’t miss Chanda Kochhar as she walks through the congress Centre at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, or into a meeting of the board of directors of the Institute of International Finance...Her calm, soft-spoken and understated demeanor belies her strength of conviction and clarity of thought...When Chandra speaks, people listen carefully.”

To me, that’s enormous.

Another of Time's “Titans” is Lorne Michaels, “King of Comedy”.  The seventy year old Canadian-American is a television producer, writer, comedian, and actor best known for creating Saturday Night Live, the Late Night series and The Tonight Show. Among his many awards, he’s been inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame and awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Lei Jun-Danny Meyer-Jorge Paulo Lemann-Satya Nadella

Others  labeled  “Titans” on the 2015 list of Time’s Most Influential People are AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes; Producer and Empire’s Creative Engine Lee Daniels; Silicon Valley’s Grand Master Investor Reid Hoffman; Restaurateur Danny Meyer;  Xiaomi CEO Lei Jun, China’s Smartphone King; Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and Investor Jorge Paulo Lemann.

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Denzel Washington -Takeaways to Dillard University Grads

Having won Two Academy Awards, five Academy Award nominations and a Tony Award,  Denzel Washington needs no introduction. Recently, he delivered the Keynote Address at Dillard University 2015 Commencement Ceremony. Washington is no stranger to Dillard University. He set up a scholarship program for students in the theater department, eight of whom were graduating, one of whom was the class Valedictorian. The program at Dillard is the oldest among the HBCU (historically black colleges and universities). He left the 218 Dillard Grads and the audience with four pillars as advice for living that you would not want to miss.

Denzel Spoke Words to live by:

1. Put God first: “Everything that I have is by the grace of God, understand that. It’s a gift. … I didn’t always stick with Him, but He stuck with me.”

2. Fail big: “Don’t be afraid to fail big, to dream big, but remember, dreams without goals, are just dreams. And they ultimately fuel disappointment. … I try to give myself a goal every day, sometimes it’s just not to curse somebody out.”

3. You’ll never see a U-Haul behind a hearse: “I don’t care how much money you make, you can’t take it with you. … It’s not how much you have, it’s what you do with it.”

4. While you’re on your knees in the morning, say thank you: “Say thank you in advance for what is already yours. … True desire in the heart for anything good is God’s proof to you sent beforehand that it’s already yours. … When you get it, reach back, pull someone else up. Each one, teach one. Don’t just aspire to make a living, aspire to make a difference.”

The University bestowed an Honorary Doctorate of Human Letters upon Washington. After his remarks and receipt of the honorary degree, Washington rushed to Wiley College in Marshall, TX, another HBCU, to give the commencement address.

During the speech, Washington candidly admitted that he once had a 1.7 GPA in college.

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Paula Deen's At It Again- Yawl hear?

Some things never change and I guess Paula Deen's racial insensitivity is one of those things.

The Celebrity Chef found herself caught up in a nightmare when her use of the "N" word became public. in an interview last year, Paula Deen told Matt Lauer that she had "learned so much" from the backlash that ended her business relationship with the Food Network and many major market outlets, i.e. Wal-Mart and Target. During a year of apologizing for the racist remarks she made, a "contrite", tearful the disgraced Food Network star declared that she "had hurt people". If the truth be told, her remarks on the Today Show told the whole story. "I is what I is", she said. She blamed her southern heritage and the language and attitudes which she says were common. While some fell for this simple explanation, others listened in disdain.

It appears that Paula has learned very little and obviously hasn't changed her mindset at all. Recently she tweeted a photo that shows she is still racially insensitive and hasn't learned a thing. The photo shows her dressed in a red wig and polka dot dress circa 1950. At her side is son Bobby Deen...in brownface. Could it be Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz? The photo is from a 2011 episode of her now cancelled show.

Let's see how many tears she sheds over this one while some whistle 'Dixie" and wave the confederate flag.

Related Articles:

Paula Deen-She's Back!

Paul Deen and Me: A Love Affair Gone Wrong

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"The Sandwich Guy" Feels the Heat

I fell in love with Jared Fogle many years ago and I'm not ashamed. He became my hero and I wanted to walk down the same path that he had walked. We both wanted the same thing, success and happiness. But, things change as life goes on and now I'm watching closely to see if Jared and I should go our separate ways.

 In 1998, Jared was a 425 pound freshman at Indiana University. Now, his story is history since he lost 235 pounds eating Subway 6 inch turkey subs (hold the cheese and mayo please) and became the face of Subway's franchise in 2000. Now his net worth is $15 million. He used some of his rewards from his successful weight loss journey and started a charitable foundation which worked to prevent childhood obesity, encouraging children to develop healthy eating habits. In my book, Jared did all the right things. Now he's "tainted good"...some say Jared is "toast", while everyone is wondering if Subway will break with their pitchman.

Recently, State, Federal and Postal Service authorities raided Jared Fogle's Indiana home. Now he's fodder for speculation on the Internet, cable and regular T.V., newspapers and magazines, and even talk radio. The late night comedians will have a field day making Jared the butt of their jokes. So, whether he's actually guilty of anything or not, Jared is "Contaminated" and that matters.

Here's the story. A couple of months ago Russell Taylor (43), director of Jared's charitable foundation, was arrested and charged with 7 counts of production of child pornography and 1 count of possession. When Jared became aware of the situation, he said he was "shocked" over the allegations and dumped Taylor. The former director tried (and failed) to commit suicide at Marion County Jail and was evventually placed on life support. Subway is quietly awaiting any negative fallout and reviewing their options.

I'll always be grateful for Jared's weight loss journey and the benefits of his personal story. Now we'll wait and see what develops through law enforcement investigations and how the media handles "The Subway Guy".

Related Article:

Jared Fogel Turned Weight Loss Into Millions, Emerald Quill Blog, June 2013

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Millennials and Politics: Disengaged and Disillusioned

If you follow the Emerald Quill you know that this blogger is obsessed with trying to understand Millennials. You also know that I keep a keen eye on politics and continuously try to share information that I think is important. I often wonder do youngsters care anything about politics at all. Think about this: 72 million young adults were born after 1985; they make up 36% of the 2014 workforce and 46% by 2020. Since Millennials hold our future in their hands, let's take a look at their political mind-set and habits.

The Washington Post reports ‘that Millennials are disengaged and disillusioned with the U.S. political system”. In many ways, that’s true. Compared with Gen Xers (born between 1965 and 1980) and Baby Boomers (1946 to 1964), the generation of Americans who were born after 1980 and before 1997 identify less with political parties, are less interested in politics and vote at lower rates. Even young Americans who consider themselves politically active may not do much more than vote every few years, sign an online petition once a year, or passive-aggressively unfriend people who express different political views on Facebook.

Many people see these trends as a product of the general uprooting of American civic society. For a variety of complex reasons -- including changes in work, technology and gender roles -- Americans today know less about their neighbors, are less likely to take part in their communities, and be part of fewer formal institutions such as churches or political parties.

Millennials are the most racially and ethnically diverse generation (40% non-white and Hispanic). They rely on Facebook for their political news, while Baby Boomers turn to local TV. This generation is the most moderate of any generation (39% moderates, 31% liberal, and 26% conservative). They are more likely to identify themselves as self described independents (50%). Millennials opt for bigger government providing more services over smaller government providing fewer services (53%).

This generation is not isolationists. They support the military conducting nation building in Iraq and Afghanistan. Sixty per cent believe that it is the right decision to use force in Afghanistan, fourteen points higher than the Silent Generation. Seven in 10 Millennials believe that immigrants strengthen our country.

A recent Pew study labels Millennials as liberal, churchless and single. Millennials haven't bought into the idea that they should go to church or get married early. Only 36 percent of the Millennials said the phrase "a religious person" described them very well, compared with 52 percent of the Gen Xers, 55 percent of the baby boomers and 61 percent of the Silent Generation. And they're significantly less religious than their immediately predecessors, the Gen Xers. When they were the same age, almost half of the Gen Xers — 47 percent — identified themselves as religious. The 64 percent of the millennials who say that they are not religious "is the highest for any age group we've ever measured," Taylor said.

 The Millennials were far less inclined toward marriage than the groups that preceded them. Only 26 percent of the millennial adults are married. When they were the same age, 36 percent of the Gen Xers, 48 percent of baby boomers and 65 percent of the Silent Generation were married.

History shows us that people change as life goes on. It will be interesting to see how much Millennials change as they get older and how those changes will impact their political views. I wonder how their political mind set and views will shape the world that they will make for themselves.

Related Articles of Interest:

Millenials Are Disillusioned with Politics, The Washington Post

When It Comes To Politics, Do Millenials Care About Anything?, The Atlantic

Polls Show Good News for Democrats With Young Voters, Huff Post Politics

Millenials Won't Be in Charge of Congress Until At Least 2035, Huff Post Politics

Improving Millenials' Civic Health and the Country's, Huff Post Politics
 

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Teetotalers: Celebrities That Don’t Drink

Kim Cattrall-Christina Ricci-Blake Lively

After the word come up in our conversation, I had to explain to my granddaughter that a “milk-toast” was an extremely mild, easily dominated person, someone you might call namby pamby or wishy washy. We went to the names of a few family members and friends trying to identify a living example of a milk-toast. When I dropped the word “teetotaler”, I advised her that this was a person who totally abstains from intoxicating drink. As a follow-up to that conversation, I identified a number of well-known celebrities who don’t drink, including actors , Kim Cattrall, Christina Ricci and Blake Lively.

Colin Farrell-Gerard Butler-Bradley Cooper

Many celebrities fell into serious trouble in their past and turned to abstinence to maintain a healthy life style and more secure future.  Bradley Cooper gave up alcohol at age 29 after a drunken incident where he being hospitalized after repeatedly banging his head on the floor. Actor Gerard Butler spent his youth, age 14 to 27 partying hard, but has been sober for more than 15 years. In 2012, he spent a stint at Betty Ford Center for pain management after a surfing injury. He wanted to avoid taking any pain pills. Actor Colin Farrell is often represented as a bad boy, ladies’ man partying hard. He confesses that for 15 years he hadn’t spoken to or made love with a woman while sober. He has been a teetotaler for 8 years.

Jennifer Hudson-Jada Pinkett Smith-Tyra Banks

Clean living supermodel and entertainment mogul Tyra Banks hasn’t had a drink since she was 12 years old. Jennifer Hudson saw lives ruined with the murder of her mother, brother, and nephew by her brother-in-law. He’s serving 3 life sentences plus 120 years in prison. Jennifer doesn’t drink, smoke or do drugs. In the past, Jada Pinkett Smith drank 2 bottles of win every night, but she’s given it up and remains totally sober. Sex in the City’s Kristin Davis quit drinking at age 22.

Retired soccer player David Beckham hasn’t touched a drink in years. His gorgeous body and amazing shape attest to his healthy life style. Joe Manganiello (True Blood/Magic Mike) had an addiction to alcohol for 4 years during his 20’s. He’s been sober for more than a decade. Country crooner Tim McGraw gave up drinking for his daughters and made a change for the better. Ben Affleck spent a stint in rehab and has been sober for 15 years.

About 12% of Americans have had an alcohol dependence problem at some point in their lives. Those who have been able to overcome this problem are noteworthy and serve as an example to others.

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Forbes List-Highest Paid Celebrities 2015 Goes Global

When Forbes listed the 100 Highest Paid Celebrities 2015, the list is not business as usual. The list still measures money earned in one year, before management fees and taxes are subtracted, but the 2015 list includes candidates from all corners of the globe. The variety on the 2015 list is interesting, from Beyonce (#29 at 54.5 million), Jackie Chan (#38 at $50 million), Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova (#88 at $29.5), to Canadian rapper Drake (#54 at 39.5 million). Thirty-two list members are from outside the U. S. and 15 are from the U.K., including Gordon Ramsey,”the chef who ate the world”, (#21 at $60 million) and singer-songwriter-musician Ed Sheeran (#27 at $57 million). Take a look at the top ten:

1.      Floyd Mayweather $300 million

2.      Manny Pacquiao     $160 million

3.      Katy Perry               $135 million

4.      One Direction          $130 million

5.      Howard Stern          $95 million

6.      Garth Brooks           $90 million

7.      James Patterson       $89 million

8.      Robert Downey Jr.   $80 million

9.      Taylor Swift             $80 million

10.  Cristiano Ronaldo     $79.5 million

 

Katy Perry is part of the burgeoning batch of stars cashing in on an increasingly global entertainment landscape. She used her Super Bowl Globe to showcase her talents to audiences abroad. As part of her Prismatic World Tour, she played 124 shows during our scoring period; 75 of them took place abroad, in 27 different countries. According to her managers, 60% of her income now pours in from foreign markets.

Believe it or not, the Gender Gap applies to both the celebrities on this list as it does to the wider society. Only 16 of the world’s highest paid celebrities are women, including Perry and Taylor Swift among the top 10 list members. Women on the list made a combined total of $809 million dollars, while men made $4.35 billion. The UN estimates it will take 70 years to close the gender gap at the current rate.

One Direction takes the No. 4 spot for similar reasons: The world’s biggest boy band played 74 dates over the past 12 months, averaging seven-figure grosses at every stop, hitting every continent besides Antarctica. Thanks to a strong touring drive—and profound changes in the concert business, spurred by the rise of the global middle class—the group earned more than twice as much as the Rolling Stones.

 

Hollywood is benefiting from this sort of trend as well. Avengers: Age of Ultron grossed $240 million in China, whose monthly box office surpassed the U.S. for the first time this past February. Robert Downey, Jr. (No. 8) earned double-digit millions for playing Iron Man in that film en route to a career-high $80 million payday, tying him with Taylor Swift, whose best-selling album 1989 moved 3.7 million units in 2014.

 

 

Taylor Swift won wide acclaim for slaying a giant. The singer wrote an open letter to Apple Music saying "please don't ask us to provide you with our music for no compensation". Apple bowed and Senior Vice President Eddy Cue tweeted "we hear you @taylorswift13", indicating that Apple Music would pay artists for streaming even during the customer's free trial period. How that for flexing your muscles.

 

Meanwhile, Vin Diesel (No. 43) banked $47 million thanks to a back-end cut on Furious 7, which brought in $1.5 billion worldwide. More than $1 billion of that sum came from abroad, including roughly $400 million in China, where it’s the highest-grossing film of all-time.

 The entertainment market is global and savvy entertainers are finding ways to tap into new sources of wealth.

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