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Showbiz Tonight
Swedish `Whiz Kid` a Huckster; Will Smith Embarrasses Son with Smooch; Bill Honored by National Father`s Day Group; SHOWBIZ Outrageous Countdown
Aired June 12, 2013 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
A.J. HAMMER, HLN HOST: Tonight on the "SHOWBIZ Countdown," "SHOWBIZ Investigates." We are exposing the Justin Bieber conman.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I think that Justin Bieber tickets have actually gone on sale, and it`s sold out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: These are the tickets that you were preparing to sell.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely. And we`re thinking that`s impossible.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: How the young whiz kid once called the Mark Zuckerberg of Norway used Justin Bieber in a million-dollar swindle.
Plus, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT outrageous countdown. Troubled star Amanda Bynes gets offered a rap deal? Seriously? Well, I`ve got the music executive who`s ready to sign her on the dotted line. Will his wild offer top our outrageous "Countdown"?
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT starts right now.
Hello, I`m A.J. Hammer in Hollywood tonight. Thank you for watching. And we will get to our "SHOWBIZ Countdown" of today`s top three most outrageous stories in just a bit.
But first, tonight, "SHOWBIZ Investigates" the Justin Bieber conman, and this is just an unbelievable story. It makes for a brilliant brilliant plot for a Hollywood blockbuster.
Listen to this: you`ve got a world-famous pop star, a million-dollar scheme, and the FBI. Only this very real crime caper has landed a 21-year- old Norwegian entrepreneur behind bars.
Waleed Ahmed became a celebrity in Norway for supposedly inventing an iPhone solar charger. But he used his star status to convince a wealth investor that he was the manager for Justin Bieber`s Scandanavian concert tour, which just kicked off this week.
A million dollars later, his cover was blown, and the FBI swooped in. Well, today, a judge is trying to decide Ahmed`s sentence, and the Bieber saga is apparently just the tip of the iceberg. Here`s CNN`s Gary Tuchman for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
GARY TUCHMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: To Todd Weinberg, a wealthy investor and entrepreneur from Northern California, 22-year-old Waleed Ahmed was the picture of success. So Weinberg felt very comfortable trusting the young man with his money, a lot of his money.
After all, Ahmed was the toast of Norway, where the press hailed him as an innovative genius for supposedly inventing a solar energy cover that could charge iPhones.
The Norwegian government even put up this video of Ahmed and his then business partner, meeting with Norway`s minister of trade and industry to show off the invention.
TODD WEINBERG, SWINDLED ENTREPRENEUR: Waleed is apparently a celebrity in Norway. They call him the Mark Zuckerberg of Norway.
TUCHMAN: And then there are all these photos of Ahmed.
WEINBERG: This is another picture he sent me.
TUCHMAN: Famous people from royalty to rich business leaders.
WEINBERG: We have him here. Toward the back. Kofi Annan here. Ted Turner. Crown prince and princess of Norway.
TUCHMAN: And this letter of thanks from Barack Obama, for whom he claimed to be the Norwegian election chairman.
Not only did Ahmed brag that he knew and posed for pictures with people like the queen of Jordan, he also sent out photos of himself with well-know people like former ambassador Andrew Young and Mark Luther King III.
So to Weinberg, it wasn`t a stretch that this young genius could be managing a Scandanavian concert tour for none other than Justin Bieber.
It all started with the call Weinberg received from a good friend in the music industry.
WEINBERG: He says that he had come across an opportunity through his kind of group, and he runs in circles down in Los Angeles, that are legit.
TUCHMAN: Weinberg was told about this young whiz kid named Waleed Ahmed.
WEINBERG: Waleed claimed to have paid, according to the contracts, $4.5 million to Scooter Braun Management for the rights to five shows in Scandinavia.
TUCHMAN: Scooter Braun Management handles Bieber. So it all started to sound real to Weinberg. Weinberg was asked to invest a million dollars: with $860,000 going directly to Ahmed so he could supposedly secure concert venues. The rest of the money went to two California management companies that Ahmed had brought in to prepare for the concerts. A series of e- mails, legitimate-looking contracts followed.
WEINBERG: I was told that I would get a percentage of the ticket sales, and the ticket sales were significant. I mean, it could be ten "X" -- a ten "X" return on my money.
TUCHMAN (on camera): So you thought you could have gotten $10 million for your $1 million investment?
WEINBERG: That was conceivable.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): In his e-mails, Ahmed was reassuring, writing, "The most important thing for me, is that everything is clean and based on a relationship."
(on camera): Were you suspicious at all in the beginning?
WEINBERG: I was suspicious in the beginning, and as a result, I had a lot of various stipulations that I needed. I needed a lot of answers to my questions.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): And Ahmed apparently had no problem providing them. The team met last August at this Burbank ,California, restaurant.
WEINBERG: He was Prada and Gucci head to toe. He was arrogant but also -- a nice guy, but he also had a bit of an edge and arrogance to him.
TUCHMAN: Weinberg thought the meeting was impressive.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: (SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE)
TUCHMAN: One of the people he met that day was the 2011 Miss Finland, Pia Pikarinen, who was going to promote the Bieber concerts. To further convince Weinberg, Ahmed arranged a conference call with a person Weinberg was told was a top member of Bieber`s management group.
But it wasn`t long before things started to unravel.
WEINBERG: We start getting kind of word from Norway from one of our contacts there, "I think the Justin Bieber tickets have actually gone on sale, and it`s sold out."
TUCHMAN: And these were the tickets that you were preparing to sell?
WEINBERG: Absolutely. And we`re thinking that`s impossible.
TUCHMAN (voice-over): There were never going to be any tickets. It was all a con job orchestrated by Waleed Ahmed.
Weinberg was frantic. He calls the FBI.
Ahmed had flown back to Norway, where he posed for these photos, and then made what would be a fateful choice. He flew back to San Francisco for one more meeting with Weinberg.
At the San Francisco restaurant, Weinberg, now wired by the FBI, convinced Ahmed to talk to him about the Bieber deal.
(on camera): This is where the end game began. This is the exact spot where Weinberg sat wired with his hidden microphone, looking directly in the eyes of the man who stole his million dollars.
(voice-over): Ahmed gave Weinberg a sob story, that his life was ruined. And then he alarmed Weinberg by adding he was going to start over, not in Norway, but in Pakistan.
WEINBERG: I`m thinking, there`s just no way I`ll see this kid again. He`ll be gone; my money is gone; it`s over.
TUCHMAN (on camera): The FBI had made the decision: the time had come to pounce. One day after the restaurant meeting, Waleed Ahmed came here to the San Francisco International Airport for a flight to Amsterdam and if he`s to be believed, a flight to Pakistan.
But just before he boarded the plane, he was arrested by the FBI.
(voice-over): As for Ahmed`s friends in high places, a spokesman says Scooter Braun has never heard of him, and neither has CNN founder Ted Turner. The former Miss Finland said she had no idea what Ahmed was up to, either. Martin Luther King III says he vaguely remembers getting his picture taken with Ahmed but does not know him.
As for Andrew Young, who met Ahmed at a U.N. Foundation gathering in Norway, he says he`s shocked at what became of who he believed was a rising star.
ANDREW YOUNG, CIVIL RIGHTS LEADER: He used my contacts for things that I didn`t know about. Nor did he ever discuss with me. If first I heard from this was when he`d been arrested and his lawyer called me and told me what he`d been charged with. And I -- my first reaction was, there must be some misunderstanding.
TUCHMAN: But there is no misunderstanding. Today, Ahmed has traded Louis Vuitton for prison garb in Los Angeles, where he`s awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to wire fraud and confessing to the FBI that he set up fake Web sites and e-mails to pull off the elaborate Justin Bieber con.
Ahmed refused to talk to CNN.
WEINBERG: It`s been rough.
TUCHMAN: Todd Weinberg, at least for now, hasn`t gotten any of his money back.
WEINBERG: It`s all that I`ve got to not to get on the plane and go visit him in prison and just sit across from him and just ask, "Why? Why would you do this?"
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: So bizarre. That was CNN`s Gary Tuchman for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
Now Ahmed was supposed to be sentenced yesterday. His defense was pushing for 18 months. Prosecutors wanted 100 months. But in a dramatic twist, the proceedings were overshadowed by the revelation of a large number of e- mails that Ahmed had sent from jail.
In the e-mails Ahmed bragged to a friend that he had no intention of paying back the money, that he would do more of this in the future and that the U.S. government would pay for locking him up in jail. That`s incredible.
The judge ruled that because of those e-mails, he would need more time to get the e-mails translated from Norwegian and Urdu to English and more time to contemplate his decision. Now the sentencing is delayed until August. Wow.
Well, from the trouble surrounding Justin Bieber to the end of Amanda Bynes` troubles, could it be? A record level just offered the off-the- rails former child star an outrageous rap deal. Why does he think Amanda Bynes could be the new queen of hip hop? Well, I`ve got the music executive who is ready to sign Amanda right here. And you better believe I`m going to ask him just that.
So is that rap offer more outrageous than the brand-new Octomom fraud investigation? Yes, that`s right: looks like the Octomom is under investigation for welfare fraud. Doesn`t she ever learn?
What`s the No. 1 story in our "SHOWBIZ Outrageous Countdown"?
This is SBT, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Now on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, "Geico`s 15 Minutes of Fame."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Millions of guys are born good looking. But not many are really good looking. Even fewer are really, really, really, really, really, really, really good looking.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Meet Dr. Pepper`s really, really, really, really, really, really good looking guy. This underwear model turned Dr. Pepper spokesman is TV`s newest sensation. That`s right, the hunky guy ad phenomenon seems to be just plain unstoppable, so why fight it?
We`re going to help Josh Button bask in his 15 minutes of fame.
This ad made Josh famous practically overnight. And I`m guessing the huge online reaction to Josh isn`t exactly about acting or that can of Diet Dr. Pepper in the commercial. Come on. Admit it, you know you`re looking at Josh`s abs. But don`t worry; we`re not going to judge you for that.
I love that Josh has taken his fame and just run with it. And the best part is that he`s got a great sense of humor about the whole thing. You`ve got to watch what Josh just told me.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Great to have you here. Love the "Zoolander" vibe in the ad. We know that flesh sells, but come on. You have got to be surprised at just how wildly popular this ad has become, right?
JOSH BUTTON, MODEL: It has definitely exceeded expectations. It`s been quite a trip.
HAMMER: And part of it, for me is it is a funny ad, but it`s also based in reality. I`ve got to tell you, I actually knew a guy who thought of himself that way. He said, I think, one time, he`s in the top 10 percent.
BUTTON: Well, I won`t ask what his name is.
HAMMER: Yes. You might know him out there, actually.
Now that you`re pretty much a household face and name, Josh, I`ve got to imagine you get recognized on the street by now. Can you give me a sense of -- I don`t know -- maybe one of the wildest reactions you`re getting or hearing when people do recognize you and say, "Hey, Dr. Pepper ad guy"?
BUTTON: You`d be surprised, actually. Luckily it hasn`t gone into my personal life or onto the street yet. I actually had a little bit of issues in New York with one or two people who`d mistaken me from somebody else, but from this ad, no.
HAMMER: Well, can you tell me who that was?
BUTTON: I think they just thought I was an actor. It had to be somebody a little bit more famous than I am, for sure.
HAMMER: OK.
BUTTON: Saw the production, and they said, "I`m going to go up to this guy and get a picture, get an autograph." And they didn`t know who`s autograph they were getting.
HAMMER: But I imagine, if it hasn`t happened, people are going to ask you to just, you know, take your shirt off, because quite frankly, I`m looking at my iPhone right here. I have a dozen e-mails from SHOWBIZ TONIGHT staffers asking you if you would do the interview without your shirt on.
BUTTON: Without my shirt.
HAMMER: Yes. I`m not going to force you to do that. They`re just asking me to do that.
All right. So here`s the thing. Before this ad came along, you know, we had that zesty Kraft salad dressing guy, real nice guy, Anderson Davis. He has used his success and has a plan in place now to capitalize on it. What about you, man?
BUTTON: I`m looking forward to what comes next. It`s -- there`s definitely opportunities out there, and we`ll see what happens.
HAMMER: All right. Charles would you put up the split. Josh and I are going to do a stare off as we take us out. Me and Josh, right there. Can we see the two shot. All right.
BUTTON: We`re going to go "Zoolander."
HAMMER: All right, Josh.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: I won the stare off, right guys? Come on. Yes? Me? All right, then.
Thanks again to Dr. Pepper`s new ad hunk, Josh Button, for that.
And we move on now to LeBron James versus, well, LeBron James. That`s enough to make your head spin, right? The real-life LeBron James taking on his video game doppelganger. This is a whole new kind of on-court trash talk, and I will reveal which LeBron comes out on top in our "SHOWBIZ Moment of Awesomeness."
Plus, Beyonce`s curve controversy. One of the world`s most famous fashion houses just erased Beyonce`s famous curves. Her fans, furious. Tonight, the battle over Beyonce`s body.
This is SBT, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: ... on television before.
WILL SMITH, ACTOR/RAPPER: Come on.
JADEN SMITH, ACTOR: No. No. No. Mwah!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Talk about SHOWBIZ parent power. There is no way that Jaden Smith is getting out of this kid from his superstar dad.
They were promoting their new summer blockbuster, "After Earth," on Thai TV (ph), and tonight SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is paying tribute to dads everywhere. Of course, mere days before we celebrate Father`s Day.
Get ready for a special "SHOWBIZ Quick Hit," Father`s Day edition. Tonight we are taking on the day`s buzziest stories about dads. We`re still doing it at lightning speed.
And really, is there anything better than Will Smith`s kiss ambush there? Jaden was actually squirming, as you saw, to get out of that full-on lip lock from his dad.
Well, Sugar Ray front man Mark McGrath is right here to take that on. Mark`s "Under the Sun" tour fires up on July 4. Very excited about that. Great to have you here. Your first time doing "Quick Hits."
MARK MCGRATH, SUGAR RAY FRONT MAN: Yes. I`m a little nervous.
HAMMER: Well, you should be. Let`s get right to the Father`s Day "Quick Hits." This first story, taking a full look now at Will Smith, making his son squirm with that on-camera kiss on the lips here.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I sense that there`s a -- there`s a what you may call it. There`s a distance in terms of affection between the general and his son. Is it like that at home or no?
J. SMITH: No.
W. SMITH: No. We`re very affectionate.
J. SMITH: Dad just kissed me.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Have you kissed on television before? Can he kiss on TV?
W. SMITH: Jaden come on.
J. SMITH: Oh! No, no!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are you all right?
J. SMITH: Oh, my God! This is ridiculous.
Come on, dude.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That`s your dad. It`s OK.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: That is fantastic, I love it. And just in time for Father`s Day.
So Mark, as a proud papa yourself...
MCGRATH: Indeed.
HAMMER: ... do you feel strongly that, you know, it`s Will Smith`s parental, fatherly prerogative to internationally embarrass his son like that? I`m putting 30 seconds on the clock. Go.
MCGRATH: It`s our noble right as parents. Nothing wrong with a little parental affection. And this is Jaden Smith. This is the man who wears polka-dot leggings out with a leather Justin Bieber skirt and you`re going to be embarrassed by a little parental affection?
Come on, Jaden. We know the reason why you`re in that movie, co-co- starring with Will Smith. Yes, you`ve been compared to Marlon Brandon in your acting skills, but you`re big Willie`s dad, and that`s why you`re there. Come on. It`s Father`s Day.
HAMMER: Big Willie`s dad? Big Willie`s son.
MCGRATH: Yes. Son.
HAMMER: Well, you know, look -- and by the way, I know your son is still young. But is it inevitable that, when he does reach his teen years, you will certainly embarrass him in some way?
MCGRATH: Without a doubt. You know that "drop me off a couple blocks down from the school thing?" Absolutely not. I`m going right up in front with the Louis Vuitton VW bug that I currently have and drop him right off at school.
And you know, we love our kids, and can you stop loving them? They can`t tell you when. We tell you when we stop loving you. And that`s never, A.J.
HAMMER: Yes.
MCGRATH: And you`re going to find out soon enough.
HAMMER: I know. And I think Jaden was just -- you know, he was hamming it up for the cameras. Let`s be real.
MCGRATH: Let`s be honest, he really is a good actor.
HAMMER: Yes. Well, Marlon Brando, we`ll have to wait and see.
MCGRATH: We`ll have to see. It`s a long career.
HAMMER: All right. Let`s move right on to this, our next Father`s Day "Quick Hit," Bill Clinton just named father of the year by the National Father`s Day Committee. Didn`t know there was one, but there you go.
Good for Bill on this, by the way, and his very own daughter, the lovely Chelsea Clinton, presented the award to him, gushing about her dad.
So what was Hillary`s response, you may want to know? Well, she sent a text. The former president joked that it said, "Congratulations. I think you deserve this." Bill Clinton joked that that is actually big praise in their family.
I don`t know, Mark. Big praise or big snub from Hillary there? Thirty seconds.
MCGRATH: A text to her husband? By the way, she didn`t have his e-mail? I mean, come on. How about a phone call, Hillary?
And one thing is for sure: maybe she made up this award, because I think someone is running in 2016 for president. And you know, we need to clear up the family image and what a way to -- maybe Hillary is behind this award. The father of the year?
HAMMER: Yes.
MCGRATH: It`s been a while, but I remember the Oval Office, my brother.
HAMMER: I remember the Oval Office.
MCGRATH: So congratulations.
HAMMER: This is a good accolade to have behind him.
Great to have you here, Mark.
MCGRATH: You, too, A.J. Thanks.
HAMMER: Make sure you check out Mark and Sugar Ray and a bunch of other great `90s pop bands on the Under the Sun tour. That will fire up June 4 - - July 4, rather. June 4 already in the past. And it will hit L.A.`s famous Greek Theater on July 14.
MCGRATH: Thank you, brother.
HAMMER: Well, if you think those stories were wild, this is downright outrageous. Troubled former child star, Amanda Bynes, just got offered an honest-to-goodness rap deal. Huh? Is she really going to be able to translate her bizarre antics into a new music career? Or is this deal all about publicity? It`s the "SHOWBIZ Outrageous Countdown" tonight.
Well, I`ve got the music exec who just offered to sign Amanda right here. We`ll find out from him what the real deal is.
Plus, the brand-new curve controversy. Beyonce fans just outraged that her famously booty-licious curves were just airbrushed out of high-fashion sketches of costumes for her tour. What is going on?
It is the red-hot Beyonce body image battle.
This is SBT, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, on HLN.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Time now for "SHOWBIZ Say What?" You`re looking at Brad Pitt mugging with the camera with a fan at the Sydney, Australia, premiere of his new blockbuster "World War Z."
What do you think Brad is really thinking? Let us know. Share your thought bubble with us. Head to HLNTV.com/ShowbizTonight, fill in the thought bubble. Our favorite answers tomorrow.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Right now the "SHOWBIZ Countdown," "SHOWBIZ Outrageous," the top three most outrageous stories of the day.
Amanda Bynes, from star meltdown to upcoming rap star? Amanda`s bizarre behavior has attracted a lot of attention. So, does one music executive really think that Amanda can rap? Or is there more to his offer for a record deal?
We are one on one with the man who says Amanda is hip hop.
But will Amanda`s new gig top the Octomom in jeopardy of going to jail? The infamous mom of octuplets and six other kids is reportedly being investigated for scamming the government for welfare. Which shocker will top the "SHOWBIZ Countdown" tonight? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT continues right now.
Welcome back to "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT," thank you so much for watching, I`m A.J. Hammer in Hollywood, and tonight on the SHOWBIZ Countdown, "SHOWBIZ Outrageous," the top three most outrageous stories of the day. Let get it to it.
Number three, from rap sheet to rapper? Amanda Bynes who we all know has gotten a whole lot of attention lately with her bizarre behavior and recent arrest has been offered a record deal by an East Coast hip-hop label. Chinga Chang Records says it wants to make a rap record with troubled star. Bynes has said she is open to life as a rapper.
You remember this, soon after she was busted for allegedly throwing a bong out of her window, she tweeted, I`m looking forward to a long and wonderful career as a singer/rapper. Hey, Nicki Minaj? Could Amanda Bynes be the new queen of hip hop? Well, Daniel Herman is the CEO of Chinga Chang Records who offered Bynes the record deal. He is joining us now from New York for the SHOWBIZ Newsmaker interview. Thanks for being here, Daniel.
DANIEL HERMAN, CEO OF CHINGA CHANG RECORDS: No problem. Thanks for having me, A.J.
HAMMER: That`s my pleasure. I got to know this is the first thing that jumped out at me, out of all the people you can make a hip hop star, why Amanda Bynes?
HERMAN: Well, I mean if you paid attention, you know, to the recent charts, as I`m sure everyone has. You have Drake, who is a former Nickelodeon actor. I don`t believe he started from the bottom, I believe that if Drake can come from a similar background as Amanda and be less talented, in my opinion, I think that Amanda has the potential to basically, you know, do the same. But at a higher level.
HAMMER: So, you are dead serious about this, you think she can blow up. I`ve got to know, has she responded to your offer to make a rap record with her? I mean how seriously have you moved this forward other than putting it out in the media here?
HERMAN: I have done everything I possibly could, and right now we are in negotiations with her lawyer. My lawyer is talking to her lawyer. I actually just left a prominent producer who has several Grammys and I`m not going to say who, but I just came from his studio and later today, hopefully she is going to be over there today and we`re going to have a meeting and discuss what type of album that she wants to put out. You know, it`s been in the media as being a rap album, you know, that she is going to be putting down rap lyrics. And that is not necessarily the case. She will be rapping, but she is a singer. If you have seen the movie "Hairspray" and --
HAMMER: Yeah, she was in the "Hairspray."
HERMAN: She has pipes. She can sing with the best of them. I think she is more talented --
HAMMER: So, let me ask you, though. Here is one thing I just want to know, are you at all concerned? You know, she is a woman who clearly needs some help. Are you at all concerned about working with her after her multiple arrests and her behavior?
HERMAN: No, because I believe that the media has taken advantage of a child actress with phenomenal talent, phenomenal looks and basically is just using that to sell advertisements on their websites.
HAMMER: Daniel, it will be interesting to see what works out, and look, I do firmly believe as somebody who has spent a little bit of time with her and seen what has happened with her over the years. I do believe she does need some, hopefully she is on that right path getting the help she needs. We`ll see what happens, Daniel. Thanks for being here, man. I appreciate it. Now the number two to on our most outrageous story of the day countdown, the guy who leaks the government`s massive Internet surveillance program just may have created the next big star of the Internet. Listen to this, a blog post by Lindsay Mills, the girlfriend of National Security Agency leaker Edwards Snowden is almost as juicy a read as the classified documents that Snowden leaked. The acrobatic dancer called herself a pole dancing super hero and lots of people are now clicking on her Youtube channel, apparently, it shows Mills practicing her craft.
In her blog, which has now been suspended, Mills shared her feelings about her boyfriend spilling government secrets, and fleeing to Hong Kong, all apparently without telling her. On her blog, what she called her "tear- streaked keyboard, Mills writes "My world has opened and closed all at once, leaving me lost at sea without a compass." With me in Hollywood, Pat Lalama who is exasperated. She is a correspondent for "Investigation and Discovery." All right, Pat, hold on a second.
PAT LALAMA, CORRESPONDENT, INVESTIGATION & DISCOVERY: Oh my God.
HAMMER: Separate - separate from the beats of the story. Do you at least feel a little bad for this woman? I mean the guy did what he did --
LALAMA: Absolutely.
HAMMER: -- like him or not and then took off.
LALAMA: Absolutely, I feel nothing for this woman. And I`m going to tell you, is - are we such a deadbeat society that this woman who has done nothing, who has contributed nothing. We have no idea if she has an iota of talent, who fancied herself, you know, Ernest Hemingway, seemingly, in her blogs. She has contributed nothing to society, are our standards so low now that we are now creating a media star out of this woman? Are we that desperate? Now that this story has made attention, I`m almost considering retiring and becoming a professional dog walker, I cannot believe --
HAMMER: You can`t handle it, can you?
LALAMA: That this is getting our attention when there`re so many other people in the world who deserve attention.
HAMMER: There is no question about that. And look, she is in a tough spot. You know --
LALAMA: She is asking for it, A.J., she loves the attention. She is seeking her 15 minutes of fame, she is capitalizing and exploiting it, she - this is what she`s waited for. She can quietly go away. She is seeking out this attention and we are giving it to her.
HAMMER: All right. I will stop, I will stop right here and let`s talk about another woman who certainly enjoyed attention and has also found herself in a tough spot. She is number one on our SHOWBIZ outrageous countdown tonight. It`s the Octomom, about to go to prison. Listen to this. TMZ reports, the mother of 14, Nadya Suleman, she is being investigated for alleged welfare fraud to see if she collected public assistance even though she made too much money?
Now TMZ is reporting that the Octomom`s reportedly eligible for welfare benefits if she earns less than $119,000 a year. The problem is, TMZ says, she may have pulled in more than $200,000 in 2012. Well, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT`s Nischelle Turner visited Octomom at her house, full of kids in April of that year and that is when Octomom told us about her welfare benefits.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: How much assistance do you get?
NADYA SULEMAN: Only food stamps. And that is food.
TURNER: And that`s how much a month?
SULEMAN: 2,000 a month --
TURNER: 2,000 a months.
SULEMAN: Half, half of what it costs.
TURNER: You remember saying I will never --
SULEMAN: Oh, I won`t do any - so I`m just - --
TURNER: I would never go on welfare. I will never take --
SULEMAN: Because you have to, because I cried making that call and you know what? I would do it again, but my goal is to get off this immediately.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: OK, so this investigation is going to unfold, we`ve talked a lot about her in the past. But look, no matter what, 14 kids to raise by herself. Let`s look at it that way, she is in a tough spot no matter what.
LALAMA: AJ, a lot of people are in the tough spot. I believe all you bleeding hearts out there hear me up. I believe in the rule of law. If she is defrauding the system, it cannot be ignored. Having said that, I think any good judicial officer would consider her situation, consider her potential problems with substance abuse --
HAMMER: Sure.
LALAMA: -- consider the fact that maybe it`s a first offense, it probably will deal with an easy hand. But the problem is, she is now society`s problem, she has been exploited by smut peddlers and the media.
HAMMER: Yes.
LALAMA: If we believe in it takes a village, than it`s up to us as to good people in society to try to figure out a good way to solve her problems and allow those children a decent future. Right now, I don`t see it. I`m very afraid for those children.
HAMMER: Yeah, I think everybody is. And it`s kind of a problem that`s been feeding itself. Pat, always great to see you.
LALAMA: Always great to see you. Welcome to L.A.
HAMMER: Thanks for being here. Well, so it`s good to be in Hollywood. Let`s talk about Beyonce now, is she possibly less bootylicious? Well, there`s major backlash tonight after designer Roberto Cavalli released his costume sketches from her Ms. Carter show. Now, look at this: did the designer purposely erase Beyonce`s curves and make her super thin?
Plus, bold and beautiful and history making.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We didn`t missed you at the wedding now.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I didn`t wait. It`s way too important. I mean it`s no secret that I hoped the things would work out differently, but there`s a baby now. And it`s good that you are creating a family.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: B&B`s Katie Logan has had a hell of a year, nearly dying and cheating Kat for a husband, but will that catapult Heather Tom who plays Katie to another daytime Emmy win. It`s SHOWBIZ at the daytime Emmy`s. Heather Tom right here talking to me about Katie`s wild ride and her real life new baby joy. Will her son follow in her acting footsteps? And wait until you see what we have named as our moment of "SHOWBIZ Awesomeness." This is SBT, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Tonight, Beyonce`s vanishing curves, she, of course, is one of the most recognizable stars on the planet, so why does she look so different in this sketch? Tonight, the super star`s fans are demanding answers. And now SHOWBIZ quick hits, this is where we take on the day`s buzziest stories at lightning speed. And let`s get a rolling with Beyonce`s vanishing curves, shall we? There`s plenty of outrage over this Roberto Cavalli sketch, that`s featuring a super stretched out Beyonce donning a Cavalli gown. Now, Beyonce`s fans are lashing out online today. They are saying Cavalli has gone way too far, taking away from the singer`s famous bootylicious curves. Well, just this morning, Cavalli actually tried to curve some of the outrage, here is the message that he posted on Facebook, at least in part it says, "The Image of Beyonce is a sketch, and not a photo, only meant to be an artistic vision."
Let me bring back my friend "Sugar Ray " frontman, Mark McGrath who was right here with me in Hollywood, an artistic vision in its own right.
MARK MCGRATH: Yes.
HAMMER: "Sugar Ray" and a bunch of other really cool `90s pop-ends are also to kick off the "Under the Sun" tour that fires up on July 4TH. So, there is a big controversy tonight about Beyonce`s fans saying that her bootyliciousness is all gone. You heard what Cavalli said, it`s an artistic vision, but did he take it too far? I`m putting 30 seconds on the clock.
MCGRATH: No, A.J., and I agree with Mr. Cavalli, and I can`t (inaudible) he has a Facebook, by the way. That`s kind of goofy. Yes, it`s a sketch, people, you know, now we are talking about sketches. And was this sketch photoshopped? Come on, man, it`s an artistic , it`s a beautiful interpretation of Beyonce, we all love her and then right next to that sketch there is a picture of the real Beyonce. So people, calm down, don`t let that mirror reflect who you really are. Change yourself if you don`t like yourself.
HAMMER: Change it!
MCGRATH: Change it, A.J.!
HAMMER: Here is the thing, I think if you would look at the whole bunch of designer sketches you would see they don`t often look exactly like the person.
MCGRATH: Haven`t you watched America`s "The Next Top Model" lately? Come on!
HAMMER: Yeah, exactly, all right! Let`s move on to our next quick -- .
MCGRATH: -- to talk about.
HAMMER: The new reports today that one of the most anticipated Hollywood weddings may be on hold.
MCGRATH: No, no, no, no.
HAMMER: Brace yourself, Jennifer Aniston fans, you too, Mark, this one is for you. Big buss when Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux first announced their engagement with fans just clamoring for details, but even in April Aniston still had not picked out a wedding dress, in fact, here is what she had told extra.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You are absolutely glowing, I have not seen you since you got engaged, so, congratulations.
JENNIFER ANISTON: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You look stunning.
ANISTON: Thank you.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I have to ask you about your dress, Valentino?
ANISTON: I don`t have a dress. No.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Have you been looking?
ANISTON: No, I haven`t - that is something that will probably come altogether at the last minute. I like to be very spontaneous.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: OK, so Aniston has not had a whole lot of time to plan her wedding and the delay is reportedly due to both of their busy schedules. So, Mark, I do not want to read into that at all --
MCGRATH: Right.
HAMMER: Look at Aniston fans, they love her, we love her. Is there any way these fans will be able to rest, we`ll be able to relax until she walks down the aisle because they have been waiting for years?
MCGRATH: Well, I hope so, A.J. And the first thing I noticed myself, at extra clip is how much they really missed me since I`ve been gone.
(LAUGHTER)
MCGRATH: With all due respect, - but I will say this, I have read where they are not only planning a wedding, but they are renovating a house.
HAMMER: Right.
MCGRATH: No, A.J., if you renovated the house with the significant other, that is the word of roses, and you can fairly get to that. And they are planning a wedding. People, take time. Love cake`s time, they need to be nurtured, but I believe in Justin and Jen, and they will be married by the end of the year. That is Mark McGrath truth.
HAMMER: Good to know you believe. We should all believe.
MCGRATH: I have been married, I am married! I love it.
(LAUGHTER)
HAMMER: Let`s remember, my guest --
(CROSSTALK)
HAMMER: Your wife is watching, you are married.
MCGRATH: Here you go.
HAMMER: Big buzz today about our next quick hit, let`s get to it. This comes from Jackie Chan, who has just revealed that he is planning a stage musical about his life. Now, we have seen him as the stunt guy, we`ve seen him as the big film star, and here he is belting one out for Ellen DeGeneres. Let us watch.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JACKIE CHAN (singing): If I can`t help falling in love with you.
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Well, there you have it, Mark McGrath, Jackie Chan showing off his other musical talent, onstage musical, love it or leave it?
MCGRATH: I`ll look at that and say, he is the guy that had a little too much to drink at the karaoke night, and gave it a shot. How about Manny Pacquiao, it reminds me a little Pacquiao`s singing style, coming from a guy who can`t sing and made a career out of music, good luck to you, Jack and God, bless you. I will be first in line at that musical. You know what I`m saying?
HAMMER: I was expecting that from you. You`ve been very candid.
MCGRATH: Come on, man. Wait for --
HAMMER: I saw you in concert a month ago, you were spectacular.
MCGRATH: You`re a kind man.
HAMMER: Great to see you live.
MCGRATH: And started drinking a lot of (inaudible) and before that.
HAMMER: OK. We will end it there.
(LAUGHTER)
HAMMER: Make sure you can check out Mark and his singing prowess --
MCGRATH: Yes.
HAMMER: Sugar Ray will be a part of a long list of other great bands at the under the sun tour kicking off July 4th and heating L.A.`s famous Greek Theater on July 14th. Well, Heather Tom`s alter ego on the "Bold and the Beautiful" Katie Logan has not really had a very beautiful year on the soap opera. Katie survived postpartum depression, a cheating husband and a heart attack. But tonight, Heather reveals why her life is far from imitating art these days and about making history at Sunday`s daytime Emmy awards, plus wait until you see what we think is our moment of "Showbiz Awesomeness." This is SBT, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEATHER TOM, ACTRESS: Feels different, holding on to him, doesn`t it, now that you are married, it`s like you know he is going to be there for life and you are right to feel that way.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
TOM: Spencer men are as loyal as they come.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: That is the spectacular Heather Tom keeping everyone on their toes as Katie Logan Spencer in "The Bold and the Beautiful," so, will Heather be up on her feet accepting another daytime Emmy this Sunday? We are just days away from kicking off the 40th annual daytime Emmy awards. I`m so excited about it. Heather Tom has already reached an incredible milestone, just last year, Heather walked away with the best lead actress Emmy making her the only actor in daytime Emmy history to have one awards at all levels, including younger actress back in `99, supporting actress in 2011, she`s been nominated for an astounding 14 daytime Emmy Awards and she`s done it again this year with her nomination for lead actress and now Heather Tom is a new mom to son Zane who is already making his mama proud. Right there, on set, look at that guy. Look at him.
Congratulations. This is great to see you again.
TOM: Thank you.
HAMMER: This Emmy nomination is obviously fantastic, but what I remember so much from last year when you got up there, your exuberance on stage --
TOM: Yes.
HAMMER: -- and you just made it a point, to just let everybody know how much you truly love what you do.
TOM: Yes.
HAMMER: I`m guessing that none of that has changed.
TOM: No, no, I`m so happy to be a part of the daytime community, I love my job, I`ve spent 23 years on daytime and it just keeps getting better and better.
HAMMER: And life keeps getting better and better --
TOM: Yes.
HAMMER: where we were sitting here last year talking about last year`s daytime Emmy awards, you were a few months pregnant at the time.
TOM: Yes.
HAMMER: What was it? October? You gave birth to your son?
TOM: Yes, end of October.
HAMMER: And he`s already been on TV.
TOM: Yes.
HAMMER: I love it.
TOM: I put him to work, you know.
HAMMER: Put him on "The Bold and the Beautiful."
TOM: No slacking off, drinking milk.
HAMMER: And we`re looking at the picture here where you tweeted out the news to your fans, everybody was responding and so excited, obviously, for you. And for him. It really brings a new meaning to bring your child to work day, doesn`t it?
TOM: Yes, yes, it does. I mean I`m lucky that I can bring him to work, and we have an environment there that`s really conducive to having my baby there, and then it`s also nice, you know, since he is there, he may as well be earning his keep.
HAMMER: Yeah, of course. Of course, I hope you are putting that money away in a trust.
TOM: Absolutely.
HAMMER: Do not become one of those moms, Heather, I expect more from you.
TOM: Absolutely.
HAMMER: And so, is that what it`s like at the soap opera environment, that there`s so much - I don`t know, accommodation made for kids? Because you would think there`re a lot of working moms.
TOM: Yeah. Yeah. I mean the thing is, it`s like because we work all year round, and we don`t ever have a night (inaudible), then it`s nice that we can bring our children to work, we have nice big dressing rooms, you know, everybody knows him and I`m not alone in that, a lot of the other actresses bring their kids.
HAMMER: What a cool way is to grow up with this extended family. Kind of like you have - you`ve been working with these people for so long, do you see - I know, maybe a little early, do you see him following in mama`s footsteps?
TOM: Oh, gosh, I don`t know. I`m hoping for like surgeon, like brain surgeon --
HAMMER: Of course, you are.
TOM: You know, like something - like something a little different.
HAMMER: Do you get nervous at all about the daytime Emmys? It was a big year for you last year, this will be icing on the cake, I imagine.
TOM: Yeah, I mean, we - it`s always a fun night, you know, you get to see a lot of people that you don`t see on a regular basis, and, you know, it`s always fun, it`s always lovely to be nominated and I always do get nervous, because I - I feel like it`s probably unlucky if I`m not nervous.
HAMMER: Well, that`s a good way of looking at it, and look, I don`t know if your mental can handle another award, but best of luck on Sunday --
TOM: Thank you.
HAMMER: I`m looking forward to seeing you there.
TOM: Thank you so much.
HAMMER: And you`ve got to check out Heather`s new show, it`s "Renovation Unscripted", it`s on HGTV started on June 29TH.
Daytime`s biggest night is just days away. We`re all getting pumped up for this, starting at 7:30 P.M. Eastern Sunday, live on the red carpet. That is where HLN`s Christi Paul and I we will be interviewing the biggest stars as they arrive. 8:00 is when Robin Meade, "Good Morning America" Sam Champion and I will be hosting this year show. The only place to see the 40th annual daytime Emmy awards. Of course, it`s right here on HLN.
Well, LeBron James was slightly less than awesome during game two of the NBA finals, but tonight, we might have a solution. Please meet LeBron, 2.0 --
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAMES LEBRON: They nailed every single detail, I`m you, but digital. Now, you may be an exact replica, can you ball like me?
Can I ball? That is funny.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: It`s tonight`s SHOWBIZ AWESOMENESS. LeBron versus LeBron. Next, this is SBT, "SHOWBIZ TONIGHT" on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
A.J.: Time for "SHOWBIZ Awesomeness," where we name the most awesome story of the day. Tonight, it is King James, times two. It was a massively disappointing night for LeBron James and the Miami Heat as they lost game two of the NBA playoffs. Alas we may have a winning strategy here. How about recruiting LeBron`s animated twin? He has got the trash talking down and he has got game. You have got to see LeBron and his digital double in this awesome preview for the upcoming NBA 2K game.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
LEBRON JAMES: I could see the guy, that 2K, they are not messing around on these graphics. He looks sick. Not bad, huh? Soak it in, playboy. They nailed every single detail. I`m you but digital. Now, you may be an exact replica, but can you ball like me? Can I ball, that`s funny. Somebody roll the clip.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Wow, that is awesome, you can get your hands on NBA 2K14 on October 1st. Next, on "Dr. Drew on Call," former child star Todd Vergis (ph) discusses Trayvon Martin`s death, he has some strong opinions about killing of Trayvon and what motivated it. That starts right now.
END
