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Showbiz Tonight
Ben Affleck Reveals Shocking Stalker Story; Katy Perry: Russell Brand Had Control Problem; Most Controversial Celeb of the Year?; Heidi Montag Regrets Plastic Surgery Marathon; Interview with Samantha J; The Business of Being Britney Spears; Disney`s Bid for Global Domination; Miley Cyrus Named MTV`s Artist of the Year
Aired December 10, 2013 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
JOHN QUINONES, ABC NEWS: I`m John Quinonas with ABC News. Please join us next time for another edition of "WHAT WOULD YOU DO?" on HLN.
A.J. HAMMER, HOST: Right now on the "Top Ten Countdown," Ben Affleck`s stalker terror. Ben reveals that a stalker posing as a paparazzo threatened to kill him, Jennifer Garner, and their kids. SBT has the chilling details.
Well, Samantha J is the rising star that everybody is buzzing about. She`s being compared to Britney Spears, Rihanna, even Gwen Stefani. Will Samantha`s hit, "Tight Skirt," make her as big as those hit-makers? Well, Samantha J is right here, and I`m going to ask her all about blazing a trail from Jamaica to the U.S. and beyond.
SBT starts right now.
Hello and thank you so much for watching. I`m A.J. Hammer, and we`re kicking off our "Top Ten Countdown" of today`s must-see, must-share stories with No. 10, Ben Affleck.
Some big revelations about a terrifying run-in with an obsessed fan. Affleck opened up in a brand-new interview with "Playboy" magazine, revealing that a man stalked and threatened to kill his wife, actress Jennifer Garner, and their children.
Well, that man was later caught outside his daughter`s preschool posing as a paparazzo. Imagine that. He was arrested, and later a judge ordered him to a mental hospital. But now Ben says overly aggressive paparazzi still feed into a dangerous situation for his family every day.
Here`s CNN`s Nischelle Turner for SBT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
NISCHELLE TURNER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): An angry Ben Affleck is blasting the photographers who he says constantly follow his family, like in this Hollywood.TV video.
BEN AFFLECK, ACTOR: You can talk to me. Don`t talk to my kid. Is that clear?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No problem. OK.
TURNER: In a new interview with "Playboy" magazine, Affleck says a man who was allegedly stalking his actress wife Jennifer Garner and his family for years basically used a crowd of paparazzi as a cover to stand outside his daughter`s preschool. He says, "They used to take pictures of our children coming out of preschool. And so this stalker, who had threatened to kill me, my wife and our kid showed up at the school and got arrested. I mean, there are real practical dangers to this."
In the 2009 incident, Steven Burky was arrested for violating a restraining order when police caught him. He was found not guilty by reason of insanity and later sent to a mental hospital by a judge.
Garner has been a major force behind California`s new anti-paparazzi law, which increases the penalties for taking photos that invade a celebrity`s right to privacy. She joined Halle Berry, tearfully testifying in front of the state assembly.
JENNIFER GARNER, ACTRESS: I love my kids. They`re beautiful and sweet and innocent. And I don`t want a gang of shouting, arguing, law-breaking photographers who camp out everywhere we are, all day every day, to continue traumatizing my kids.
TURNER: She told CNN`s Chris Cuomo she`s hoping the new law will bring a change in her life.
GARNER: I`m looking forward to January 1, when the law will go into effect. But no, so far I haven`t seen a bit of difference. The threat of it is not enough. There are ten cars outside my house every single morning.
TURNER: In the article Affleck says he can handle the attention. But he says his kids aren`t celebrities, and they deserve a little privacy. He said, "The tragic thing is people who see those pictures naturally think it`s sweet. They don`t see the gigantic former gang member with a huge limb standing over a 4-year-old and screaming to get the kid`s attention."
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Wow. What a life to have to endure that. I can`t even imagine how terrifying it has to be for a child to be swarmed by paparazzi.
And as dramatic a story as that was, it`s just the start of Ben`s revelations. With me from Hollywood, entertainment journalist David Begnaud. From Washington, D.C., Helena Andrews is a "Reliable Source" columnist for the "Washington Post."
And like Ben said, I do also get the impression that so many people probably see the kids` pictures in the magazines, and they say, "Hey, what a beautiful, cute, rich, famous family."
Helena, would you agree with me that, after seeing that, a lot of those people are probably saying now, "Wow, that is some scary stuff they have to endure"?
HELENA ANDREWS, COLUMNIST, "WASHINGTON POST": Absolutely. I mean, there is no argument for that being OK, you know what I mean? Like, whether you`re a parent or not, everyone knows that paparazzi, like, camping out at your child`s preschool and someone who`s threatening to kill you and your family, celebrity or not, that`s scary. That`s really scary. And you can totally empathize with Ben, with Jennifer, with any celebrity that has to deal with something like that.
HAMMER: Yes, and I`m really happy Ben gets right in the faces of those paparazzo [SIC] and says, "Deal with me. Don`t talk to the kids. That`s off limits."
David, we know celebrities often don`t get a whole lot of sympathy, but I really think that Ben and certainly his kids are deserving of some, after seeing what he has to go through.
DAVID BEGNAUD, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST: Yes, look, here`s the deal. We all know Ben is a good actor, but he`s a great dad. And when you read more of this interview, what`s interesting is how passionately he talks about the kid. He`s like, "Look, in the U.K., they`ll make you blur a kid`s face. I`m not trying to ask you to blur a kid`s face. I`m just trying to ask you to back away from my children."
We get the fact that he`s an actor. If the paparazzi want to go after him, go after him, and he says, "I`m game. But just -- just be sensitive around my kids." I think anybody, parent or not, could empathize with that.
HAMMER: And I want to get to some good stuff from Ben Affleck, because in the new interview with "Playboy" magazine, he revealed how his wife, actress Jennifer Garner, actually helped him get his career back on track, despite the fact that they had that big flop, "Daredevil," back in 2003. Listen to what he says.
"Getting to know her, falling in love with her and being connected with her gave me a foundation to reach out and say, `OK, I`m going to do "Hollywoodland." I`m going to do, "Gone Baby Gone."` She is, by leaps and bounds, the most important person to me in that respect. Over the past 10 years, she has allowed me to have a stable home life while accomplishing my professional goals."
You know, he`s been pretty guarded in the past about things, but I`m happy to hear that he`s talking about it and saying exactly what he is saying about it.
All right. As we move on in our countdown to No. 9, another star is getting up-close and personal about her love life. Katy Perry revealing to "Marie Claire" magazine in a brand-new interview she`s happy to be back with her boyfriend, John Mayer, calling him, quote, "a fantastic partner."
But Perry throws cold water on having babies right now. She also reveals why she thinks her husband -- her ex-husband, Russell Brand, wanted her to be a mom so badly. Listen to this. She said, "When I decide to have a family, I`ll just want to be a mom for a little bit. Russell really wanted me to have children, and I knew I wasn`t ready. I think it was a way of control. I think it was part of, if I have a kid, then I would have to sacrifice. I`d have to be home more. I really wanted to, but I knew I wasn`t ready for it."
I have to tell you, I read that and I was pretty surprised to hear Katy calling out Russell publicly like that. But Helena, if it`s true, that he would actually have used having a child to control her, that`s obviously pretty sad.
ANDREWS: Absolutely. It`s a control thing. You know, it`s a total power trip. And I think in the midst of he`s having it all/opting out debates. A lot of women realize, like, when you do have children, sometimes your career has to take a backseat.
And if you`re in a relationship, and the power struggle might be a little bit off, because you`re Katy Perry, and you are a pop superstar known all around the world, if your husband might be resentful of that and wants to keep you home, you know, that`s a situation I think a lot of women have found themselves in.
I really applaud her for being open and honest about it. Because I think a lot of young women who are professional, who are career-driven, they find themselves in that same situation, like, should I have kids or should I continue my career?
HAMMER: Yes. If that is what happened, I do applaud her for putting it out there, too. But David, tell me if you agree with me that she must have felt pretty burned by Russell to have actually put that out there like that. She knows people would be talking about that.
BEGNAUD: Well, right. Yes, and look, Russell would love a chance to say what he thinks on this.
We don`t know if that`s actually the case of what he wanted. But what I love about her is that she`s confident enough to think about it, come out and say it. This woman is not going to be controlled.
She didn`t become a superstar -- I love a quote in a magazine that says, "I`ll never give up because there`s" -- I forget it, paraphrasing here, but "there`s a good group of people in line waiting to take over this position." She`s not going to let a man, or a fan or anybody push her out of the way.
HAMMER: And it is also great to see that she and John Mayer are doing so well together. I think -- I actually think this could be the real deal. I think they both have grown up an awful lot.
BEGNAUD: Really?
HAMMER: Hey, listen, I`m an optimist and a romantic. David, Helena, thank you both so much.
BEGNAUD: There you go.
ANDREWS: Thank you.
HAMMER: Well, listen, if you haven`t heard of Samantha J, I`m telling you, you`re going to want her on your Spotify list ASAP. Think Rihanna meets old-school Britney Spears.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC: SAMANTHA J`S "TIGHT SKIRT")
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: I love this jam. Samantha J`s "Tight Skirt" taking over the music charts from her home country of Jamaica to right here in the U.S. Well now, Samantha is right here on SBT. We`re going to talk about music, Jamaica, and her plans to be the next big pop sensation.
Plus, reality star Heidi Montag`s new plastic surgery shocker. Why she now says she regrets getting ten cosmetic procedures in one day. Heidi and Spencer Pratt are coming clean to me about the real price of fame when your 15 minutes are up.
It`s going to be one fired-up countdown, but what could be No. 1? This is SBT on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SARA GILBERT, CO-HOST, CBS`S "THE TALK": I feel like people are buying lingerie into their 40s, and I wish that Heidi wouldn`t retire. Like, I think it`s great for this country to see all ages. She`s beautiful. Put your underwear on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: It`s always a great time when I visit my friends over at "The Talk." That`s co-host Sara Gilbert, sounding off on the big news that Heidi Klum is now done walking the runway in lingerie since she`s hit 40.
Heidi has made some pretty provocative choices in her career. You remember that naked music video with her ex-husband Seal?
That brings us to No. 8 on our "Top Ten Countdown" here on SBT. Talking about the most provocative celebrities of the year with the ladies of "The Talk." Kanye West, Miley Cyrus, Robin Thicke? Who could possibly take top honors as the most controversial and influential of 2013? Who should we get ready to name as the most provocative celebrity of the year? Well, I put that question to Sara, along with Aisha Tyler, Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood, and the lovely Julie Chen.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JULIE CHEN, CO-HOST, CBS`S "THE TALK": Miley Cyrus. It has to be.
AISHA TYLER, CO-HOST, CBS`S "THE TALK": How could it not be? And there have been other provocative people, obviously. I think the three you`ve talked about a bit: Kanye, Miley and Justin Bieber, but I think that Miley by far. Right?
SHARON OSBOURNE, CO-HOST, CBS`S "THE TALK": I think the others come into the category of stupid, but she`s for real.
HAMMER: Are you talking about -- are you talking about peeing in a bucket, Sharon?
GILBERT: She`s being provocative on purpose. It`s part of her brand. I think that`s what Sharon is politely trying to say.
HAMMER: That was polite for Sharon. Right.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Well, the ladies certainly are never shy, but you are going to have to wait to see who SBT names as the most provocative celebrity of the year.
That leads us to No. 7 on our countdown. Heidi`s plastic surgery regrets.
Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt, TV`s most notorious reality show couple, who claim they blew through a whopping 10 million bucks, both say they now regret Heidi`s 10 plastic surgery procedures in one day marathon, but not only because it cost them a bundle of cash. Spencer admits he was too lost in fame to even take notice of Heidi`s pain, and Heidi is now saying it was her doctor who kicked off her quest for perfection.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
HEIDI MONTAG, REALITY TV STAR: I had my nose re-broken by a backup dancer, and I just was going in to get it fixed. And once I was there with the doctor, he was like, "Oh, and your breasts are smaller, and I would do this, and you should get a mini eyebrow lift, and what about your chin?" And this and that.
So I left there kind of in shock and really insecure and in horror like, "Oh, my gosh, I really didn`t realize I had that much wrong with me." And then, you know, when you have this surgeon basically diagnosing what`s wrong with you, I just got really insecure. And I, you know, just got way too caught up, and it sounded easy, and I didn`t research it, and I was irresponsible with my choices.
HAMMER: Interesting hearing your perspective on it now.
Spencer, I was always wondering, when Heidi was going through all of this, what the heck were you thinking? Were you there rooting her on because she was your partner, or were you pulling her aside and saying, "You know what? You may want to rethink all this" or "Maybe you`re being kind of nuts"?
SPENCER PRATT, REALITY TV STAR: I was just not really thinking about much going on at any time. During all that, I was so deep in, you know, the TV show and everything that, when she was like, "Oh, I`m doing this and this," it`s like, oh, great.
She made it out the way her doctor made it out, it was like alterations on an outfit. Like you know, you want to do that? Great. Do what you`re going to do. But I was definitely so lost in just fame that, you know, I was not thinking like normal human beings at that time.
HAMMER: Well, I love -- I love the fact...
PRATT: Like I...
HAMMER: I`m sorry. I do love the fact that you`re saying all this and admitting how self-involved you were at the time, but here you are still together. And I think that says a lot about the evolution that you guys have experienced together.
MONTAG: Yes.
PRATT: Yes. I would definitely say, as much as it was a nightmare, everything, with the surgeries and everything, it`s definitely made us so much stronger, you know.
It was awful being her nurse through all of it, but it definitely made me love her more, because you know, you`re not even supposed to see your loved one, like, in that much pain. You know, especially not like where they choose to be in that much pain. Usually it`s like a car accident or something.
MONTAG: Yes.
PRATT: So definitely -- it`s definitely made us stronger as a couple.
HAMMER: I can`t imagine. I`ve told people the story before, that I had an operation for a deviated septum. Obviously, I did not correct the size of my nose at the time. It was more of a breathing thing. I had to have it done. It was so excruciating and so awful and so painful, when I came out of the procedure, I thought, "I can`t believe anybody has anything done like this voluntarily." It just kind of blew my mind.
MONTAG: It`s very traumatizing. People don`t really get into the psychology of it and aftermath of it. You think you just go in, you get fixed, it`s fine, but there are repercussions. And it is really tolling on, you know, your spirit and everything that you go through, and it`s a very severe, serious procedure. All of them.
HAMMER: You clearly have learned your lesson through it, and I know you`ve recently have undergone some major surgery once again, corrective surgery to reduce your breast size. When you look in the mirror now, Heidi, how do you see yourself?
MONTAG: I feel so much more like myself. I feel normal again. I feel fresh; I feel healthy; I feel a lot lighter. I feel very thankful that it didn`t get worse than the problems were. I can have feeling in my arm again, so my arm`s not numb and my nerves in my back are returning to normal, so I just feel really grateful.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Another star is confessing her biggest regrets. It`s Britney Spears. In a brand-new interview, Britney is revealing the absolute worst thing that she`s ever done in her career. I`m going to give you a hint. It was caught on tape, and it made everyone stop dead in their tracks.
Plus, Miley is No. 1 again.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC: MILEY CYRUS`S "WRECKING BALL")
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: MTV names Miley Cyrus the Best New Artist of the Year. No brainer or no fair? Which pop princess will be No. 1?
This is SBT on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: We`re back with our "Top Ten Countdown" of today`s must-see, must- share stories. And right now, it`s our big No. 6, the secrets of bringing "Mary Poppins" to life.
It is Hollywood week on "MORNING EXPRESS," and our own Robin Meade is spilling the beans on some of Hollywood`s best-kept secrets. And as Robin found out, it took a whole lot more than her trusty umbrella to get Mary Poppins off the ground in Hollywood.
Hi, Robin.
ROBIN MEADE, HOST, "MORNING EXPRESS": Hi, A.J. One of the biggest Disney classics is "Mary Poppins," right? But we`re going to have to let you in on a little secret: Getting "Mary Poppins" to the big screen was not easy. It was downright nasty. That`s the subject of the new movie "Saving Mr. Banks." This is the one starring Tom Hanks as Walt Disney.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TOM HANKS, ACTOR: Well, here you are at last. Oh, my dear gal. You can`t imagine how excited I am to finally meet you.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If Tom didn`t do it, I don`t know what we would have done.
HANKS: Walt, you have to call me Walt. Mr. Disney was an old man. Isn`t that right?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Absolutely, Walt.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I thought the idea of an icon playing an icon really helped us.
HANKS: Twenty years ago I made a promise to my daughters that I would make your Mary Poppins fly off the pages of your books. I promised.
EMMA THOMPSON, ACTRESS: He was somebody who knew how to get his own way and did not know what to do with himself when he found he was up against someone who was equally powerful. And who had created something which, after all, was a work of genius.
Let us begin.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: She has a lot of ideas.
HANKS: What kind of ideas?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Responstible.
THOMPSON: No, no, no, no. "Responstible" is not a word.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We made it up.
THOMPSON: Well, unmake it up.
I mean, the snobbery of it. The sheer and unbridled snobbery was bliss to play.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.
THOMPSON: Stop, Mary Poppins is not for sale. I won`t have her turned into one of your silly cartoons.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s about the sort of complicated, dark brawls. And we`re talking about making "Mary Poppins."
THOMPSON: You didn`t bring me all the way here to tell me that.
HANKS: Oh, no, I had a wager I couldn`t get you on a ride. I just won 20 bucks. Yes!
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MEADE: "Saving Mr. Banks" is already getting a lot of Oscar buzz for the Best Picture, which A.J., you can explain to me how that happens. How can it get buzz before we even get to see it in the theaters? That would be for the performances by Tom Hanks and Emma Thompson.
It does open nationwide on December 20.
HAMMER: Very cool. All who you know, Robin; all who you know. All right. Thank you so much for that.
Be sure to catch Robin revealing more Hollywood secrets all this week on "MORNING EXPRESS."
Well, you`ll remember Britney Spears in that schoolgirl`s uniform in the "Baby One More time" video? Of course. Well, picture it now rebooted for the 21st Century with a really cool Jamaican vibe. That`s Samantha J`s "Tight Skirt."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC: SAMANTHA J`S "TIGHT SKIRT")
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: I love it. Can`t wait to show you more. Samantha J straight out of Jamaica and ready for the world. And she is right here on SBT. We`re going to talk all about her plans to be the next international pop sensation.
Plus, Metallica officially rocks the record books. This is very cool. You`re going to find out how the heavy metal band icons just became the first band to jam on every continent in the planet. So the big question is, which newsmaker could possibly top this very, very tight countdown?
This is SBT on HLN.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
(MUSIC: SAMANTHA J`S "TIGHT SKIRT")
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Right now the Top Ten Countdown, Samantha J`s rising star. The 17-year-old singer is blazing a whole new trail from Jamaica to the U.S. with her hit "Tight Skirt." I`m telling you, this girl is on fire. Samantha J is right here on SBT, talking all about her brand-new success.
And Samantha may want to listen up to pop legend Britney Spears. Britney just revealed her biggest regret of her brilliant career. You`ve got to hear what Britney thinks is the worst thing she`s ever done. Will one of these pop stars be number one on the countdown? SBT continues right now.
Welcome back. Thank you for watching. I`m A.J. Hammer and we`re making our way to number one on our countdown of today`s top ten must see, must share stories. And we`re up to number five, with new team pop singing sensation Samantha J. right here with us. She is the rising star that everybody is buzzing about right now. It`s because of her very first single "Tight Skirt," which is tearing up the charts. It has had nearly a million views online.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SAMANTHA J: (singing)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: I love it. I was cranking it up in my office today, and I`m actually dancing around, something you wouldn`t want to see. Samantha, it`s great having you`re here first of all.
SAMANTHA J: Thank you so much, A.J.
HAMMER: Oh, absolutely, congratulations.
SAMANTHA J: Thank you. I appreciate it.
HAMMER: You don`t want to see me doing my reggae dance at all, it`s not a good thing. But look at you. Nearly a million views online. It`s the most shared video on the MTV thing. You head`s got to be spinning right now.
SAMANTHA J: It`s crazy. It`s crazy. Everything happened really fast. Like I sided up, going on summer break from school, then came back to school and it was- my song was number one on all these charts in Jamaica. It was - it was a hit in Jamaica. And then I hear my song on the radio, I`m on the front page of newspapers. It`s just amazing.
HAMMER: And it`s not getting old.
(LAUGHTER)
SAMANTHA J: No, it`s just getting better.
HAMMER: It` just getting better and much more exciting.
SAMANTHA J: Ye.
HAMMER: So you`re 17 years old.
SAMANTHA J: Yes. I just turned 17 in October.
HAMMER: And of course, you know, I can`t deny that I look at this video and I see you in this schoolgirl garb there. It does remind me of a video that came out about 15 years ago, at least some of the attire. Britney Spears "Hit me, baggy. one more time." Were you trying to work a little Britney there? Is it just around .
SAMANTHA J: It wasn`t intended. It wasn`t. It was just kind of weird. But I`ve been hearing that a lot. The video was actually shot down in Kingston near a college. And basically we just wanted to give the downtown a real Jamaican vibe so we went deep - we put in some dance choreography and stuff like that.
HAMMER: And this is what we`ve been seeing, if we were hanging out downtown Kingston, right?
SAMANTHA J: No. You wouldn`t me see me walking around .
HAMMER: But I will tell you this. You know, that song, of course, for Britney is what got her known to all of us and that`s what`s happening with your song here. It is a hook that just grabs us and brings us right -- should we play some more?
SAMANTHA J: Sure. Play some more?
(MUSIC)
HAMMER: If that`s going on in downtown Kingston, I think everybody is flocking to downtown Kingston.
(LAUGHTER)
HAMMER: Listen, you`re from Jamaica, obviously and your sound understandably has been compared to another super global pop star who took the world over several years ago, Rihanna.
SAMANTHA J: Yes.
HAMMER: She`s from Barbados, of course. I have to imagine you feel pretty good when you hear that kind of a comparison.
SAMANTHA J: Of course, it`s like an honor. She is like huge right now. She`s one of my idols. So to know that people actually comparing me to her is amazing. It`s like a dream come true.
HAMMER: And I have to tell you, I spent a fair amount of time with Rihanna back - I guess it was the summer of `05. You would have been all of what eight, nine years old? Right?
SAMANTHA J: Yeah.
HAMMER: And that was - that was when pundit replay was her first hit. And nobody really knew her name at that point, they knew the song, it was the biggest song of the summer. And you remind me a lot of her.
SAMANTHA J: Wow!
HAMMER: Yes.
SAMANTHA J: Thank you.
HAMMER: Yeah.
SAMANTHA J: Thank you very much.
HAMMER: So, stay in school. She used to stay cool, she`s got on - done some pretty wacky things, but I think she is staying super cool and true to herself. And I sense you`re going to do the same thing. What`s been the most exciting part of all of this? Because obviously, you are getting (inaudible) here on television. You`re here in New York for what, the second time in your life?
SAMANTHA J: Well, the most exciting thing was probably performing on BET 106 & Park last night. The crowd was amazing. There were a whole lot of kids that were waving Jamaican flags. It was crazy. It was good. And funny. Perfectly.
HAMMER: And look, what`s going for you - you did the "106 & Park" show, which was terrific. You were named to MTV`s buzz worthy list, and you kicked off the young stars week. But I would have to say getting to see snow here in New York has to rank up there pretty high.
SAMANTHA J: Right.
HAMMER: You`ve never been in snow before today?
SAMANTHA J: First time. Yesterday, actually. First time. I was like oh my god! How is this happening?
HAMMER: Did you make a snowball?
SAMANTHA J: No. I took up snow and I was like. HAMMER: Take her to the park before it all ends, let her make a snowman, please. Nice to meet you.
SAMANTHA J: Thank you so much.
HAMMER: And best of luck. Please come back when you`re a global superstar. Join us .
SAMANTHA J: I appreciate it.
HAMMER: All right, Samantha, thank you so much.
Well, Samantha J says that she has looked to Britney Spears for some inspiration, and now 15 years after Britney birthed onto the scene with "Hit me, baby." Britney still making headlines. She`s certainly had a lot of ups and downs in her career, but she just revealed the biggest mistake of her career was doing it TV reality show. You remember that? Back in 2005. She was on the series "Chaotic" with the now ex-husband Kevin Federline?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRITNEY SPEARS: I am totally wigged out. Kevin got (inaudible). I wanted to have a longer good time and I partied a little bit too much.
Kevin just wasn`t feeling it at all, and he was being a bit of a control freak. I didn`t like that too much.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Maybe that wasn`t such a good move, but Britney has certainly come a long way since then. That brings us to number 4 in our countdown, it`s the business of Britney. She just released her brand new album "Britney Jean," and she`s about to begin a two-year stint in Vegas. I think it`s a great move for her. It`s safe to say her career is seriously back on track, but what`s the big money business of being Britney really like? Here is CNN`s Christine Romans for SBT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTINE ROMANS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Britney Spears is back to work. With a brand new album, "Britney Jean," and she`s headed to Vegas. Not to get married this time, but to make money. A two-year Planet Hollywood residency, earning a reported $15 million a year, or $300,000 a show. More money for a woman who topped Forbes list of highest earning female musicians last year, bringing in $58 million. She`s come a long way from Mouseketeer, then teen pop icon. Her first single became one of the best- selling singles ever.
And her first album, the best-selling debut in history. 30 million copies worldwide. Her second album sold 25 million copies. And Britney was all grown up. Two more albums and a big screen debut. That film, "Crossroads," brought in more than $60 million worldwide.
With success came personal struggles and a professional pause, playing out in front of flashbulbs. Her dad taking control of her finances -- he still controls the money today.
But fans wanted more. Spears gave it to them with her comeback album "Blackout." The follow-up, "Circus," with her first number-one single since her "Baby One More Time" days. The "Circus" tour made more than 130 million worldwide.
In 2001, "Femme Fatale" was her sixth album to reach number one. As a judge on "The X Factor" last season, she earned $15 million for those opinions. And with fame came endorsements. A perfume empire with Elizabeth Arden. Deals over the years with Candie`s, Hasbro, Toyota and Pepsi. All why, at just 32, she`s worth more than $200 million. The business of being Britney Spears is.
SPEARS (singing): Crazy.
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HAMMER: $200 million, no kidding. It`s good to be Britney, and it`s very good to see Britney back at the very top of her game. I think those Vegas shows will be pretty awesome.
Well, some metal icons just made rock history at the bottom of the world.
Oh, yeah, Metallica head-banging with the penguins. And some hard-core fans in Antarctica. We`re revealing how the metal legends just played their most extreme show ever.
And Metallica aren`t the only ones vying for global determination. HLN`s Robin Meade is revealing how Disney is taking over the planet. It`s all part of Robin`s amazing week in Hollywood. She is revealing stunning secrets about the new face of Disney. Will one of these plans for global takeover be number 1? This is SBT on HLN.
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HAMMER: Welcome back to our top 10 countdown, and now at number 3, Metallica makes history. The heavy metal icon just became the first rock band ever to rock out on every continent on the planet. The boys just played a gig in Antarctica. To cinch the record, about 100 hard-core headbangers actually gathered to watch it. It was a mix of contest winners and scientific researchers based in Antarctica, because after all, you got to fill the crowd, right? Take a look now at Metallica making history without the need to put on your thermal undies.
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HAMMER: They don`t look too cold. Metallica played for about an hour. I do have to imagine it`s one of the strangest places the metal legends have ever put on a show. Good for them.
Our top 10 countdown continues now with no. 2. HLN`s Robin Meade revealing the new face of Disney. It is all part of Hollywood week on "Morning Express," where Robin is giving us a fascinating look at some Hollywood`s best kept secrets. You may not think or you may think that you know all about the magical world of Disney, because after all, we all grew up watching Disney classics like "Bambi" and "Dumbo." Of course, we`ve all been to the theme parks, too. But I`m telling you, Disney ain`t what it used to be. And Robin is right here to reveal the Disney of the 21ST century. Robin?
ROBIN MEADE, HLN: A.J., you know it`s no secret that Disney can make a blockbuster. Did you know that two of the movies out this holiday season are from Disney? Let me take you inside some of the secrets of that company right now as we go Hollywood together.
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MEADE: "Frozen" is currently heating up the box office, but Disney`s real money is in superheroes. Disney bought Marvel Comics back in 2009. That investment has paid off big time. "The Avengers" alone grossed more than $1.5 billion worldwide. But the Disney shopping spree started five years before that.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What did you do with Kermit?
MEADE: The Muppets were Disney`s first big purchase back in 2004. Two years later, they bought Pixar, the studio behind such franchises as "Cars" and "Toy Story." And these characters are shipped all over the world. There are Disney theme parks in Florida, Tokyo, Paris, two in California, as you know, and did you know that they are building one in Shanghai, China?
Now Disney has gone to another galaxy. Last year it purchased Lucasfilm and with it "Star Wars." Just the merchandise, keep in mind, for "Star Wars," had raked in more than $33 billion. Now they`re making more "Star Wars" movies, and I mean a lot more. They`ve announced plans to come out with about one movie a year starting in 2015.
(EV)
HAMMER: It`s pretty incredible, Marvel Comics, Lucasfilms, five theme parks around the world, clearly not just "Dumbo" and "Bambi" anymore. Thank you, Robin. Be sure to catch Robin revealing more Hollywood secrets. It`s happening all this week on "Morning Express."
Incredible secrets from Disney, headbanging in Antarctica with Metallica. There`s been some serious competition on our countdown. What could possibly be number 1? The big reveal is coming up next. This is SBT on HLN.
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HAMMER: Now the big reveal of number 1 in our top 10 countdown of today`s must see, must share stories. Miley wins again. That`s right. Miley Cyrus nabbed MTV`s best artist of the year honor after really what has been a truly incredible year of music and performances, and, of course, more buzz than anybody else. But is this just the beginning of Miley`s push for world domination? I posed that question to entertainment journalist Hyla. I asked him if MTV got this one right.
HYLA, ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST: She brings huge ratings for their network, so it makes sense for them to promote her and name her best new artist. If we`re talking purely album sales, no, we have Justin Timberlake, we have Jay-Z, we have Daft Punk. There are a bunch of artists this year, Katy Perry, who has released albums who sold way more than Miley. I think her "Bangerz" is only around 500,000, so in terms of album sales, no way, she hasn`t had that type of impact. And also, because she does get so much publicity, the return on investment should be much bigger. I don`t think she has that sustainability. She is going on tour next year, so maybe that will help the album sales.
HAMMER: So you`re saying for the amount of headlines that she`s gotten, she should have done a whole lot more. If it was a Katy Perry getting this number of headlines, Katy would have been completely through the roof.
HYLA: Oh, 100 percent. The reality is MTV wants to do this because they want more ratings. That`s why they`re rolling out like a whole special week dedicated to her, because it brings their numbers up. But you can`t tell me she`s the best artist of the year. It`s not even close.
HAMMER: I don`t think Miley is crying about how things worked out. And quite frankly, she has said outright that every move she makes is calculated. In fact, she revealed something about that to MTV. Let`s watch that.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CYRUS: I don`t pay attention to the negatives, because I`ve seen this play out so many times. How many times have we seen this play out in pop music? You know now. You know what`s happened. Madonna has done it, Britney has done it, every VMA performance, anyone that performs, you know, anyone that performs, that`s what you`re looking for, you`re wanting to make history. Me and Robin the whole time said, you know we`re out to make history right now. It`s amazing what I think now, we`re 3 days later, and people are still talking about it. They`re overthinking it. You`re thinking about it more than I thought about it when I did it. Like, I didn`t even think about it, because that`s just me.
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HAMMER: It`s just her. All right, she clearly had a plan from the start even if she wasn`t thinking about it. She was just being herself. OK. Kim Serafin, the senior editor for "Intouch" weekly, you have to shed some light on this, Kim, with me in New York. Time and again this year, Miley has taken the stage with other big artists, but it has always been Miley who has generated all the buzz. Are you with MTV on their vote?
KIM SERAFIN, INTOUCH WEEKLY: I agree that she`s not the best artist, necessarily, in terms of just music. But in terms of page views, in terms of people watching her videos, in terms of people talking about her, yes, then she wins hands down. Think back to the VMAs. She was on stage with Robin Thicke. Is he named as the best artist? No, but yet people watched that video, but yet it`s her that people are talking about. It`s her on Vivo`s list of most watched videos. That`s who people are watching, that`s who people are talking about. And it`s not just about the twerking -- yes, it is certainly the twerking, and Miley becoming Miley when she used to be Hannah Montana. But it`s also all these other important issues I think that people are talking about, whether there`s oversexualization of women, whether if a man did this, people would be talking about it as much as they are, whether she`s a feminist or not a feminist. So I think there are so many other issues here to really talk about that she raised.
HAMMER: There are a lot of good issues to talk about. I don`t think she had it in mind at all that she would be prompting those conversations, and quite frankly, I don`t know if she really cares. Hyla, Kim, thank you both so much. You can pick up the latest "In Touch Weekly" magazine on stands right now.
It`s time right now for the SBT buzz list. These are the things that we cannot stop talking about. We can`t put this book down. "Double Down: Game Change 2012." John Heilemann and Mark Halperin. It is the sequel to the "Game Change" book about the 2008 election.
With a cam card app, you will never lose a business card again. This app is pretty cool. It takes a picture of a business card, and then it`s instantly added to your contacts.
If you haven`t seen this yet, it may be one of the best ways to learn about the late Nelson Mandela. "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom" starring Idris Elba in theaters now.
Happy new year, J-Hud. Jennifer Hudson on the cover of January`s "Essence."
And we can`t get this song out of our heads, "Happy" by Pharrell Williams from the "Despicable Me 2" soundtrack. Here is a taste.
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HAMMER: It`s arrived, our moment of awesomeness. This is where we name the most awesome story of the day, and it is so awesome we have been buzzing about it all day. So if you`ve had a tough day, I`m about to put a serious smile on your face, really. We have got what you need to be happy for at least the next 24 hours. Pharrell Williams has just released a 24- hour interactive music video called "Happy." This video has a full day`s worth of scenes, and each one is guaranteed to make you grin. So here now, a few seconds of bliss to help you get started.
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HAMMER: It makes you feel pretty happy. Do you feel pretty happy over there, Jay? All right. Thank you for watching. I`m so happy and I`m going to get out of here. You can catch SBT live every Monday through Thursday at 6:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific, and at 11:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific. HLN continues now.
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