SPOTTED: Kendra Wilkinson Baskett and husband Hank Baskett at a book signing for Kendra’s new book, Being Kendra: Cribs, Cocktails and Getting My Sexy Back, at Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles, CA September 23, 2011.
SPOTTED: Jermaine Jackson at Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles, CA, September 21, 2011 for a book signing and fan meet and greet.
In his new book, You Are Not Alone: Michael, Through A Brother’s Eyes, Jermaine, Michael Jackson‘s older brother, offers a memoir, tracing his brother’s life starting from their shared childhood and extending through the Jackson 5 years, Michael’s phenomenal solo career, his loves, his suffering, and his tragic end. The book offers to be a no-holds-barred examination of the man, aimed at fostering a true and final understanding of who he was, why he was, and what shaped him.
SPOTTED: Soleil Moon Frye at a book signing and fan meet and greet at the Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles, CA August 31, 2011.
You will best remember Soleil Moon Frye from the popular ’80s TV comedy series Punky Brewster, about a spunky, enthusiastic, and positive orphan adopted by a lonely old man. Soleil is still spunky, enthusiastic, and positive, now as an entrepreneur and social media maven. She even has authored parenting advice book, Happy Chaos, published this month.
Happy Chaos is the sign of a family operating at its best-when parents accept that they’ll make mistakes, that there will be messes, tears and skinned knees. Here is an excerpt from the book (Watch a video below of Soleil reading a story from the book):Publish Post
“I was seven years old when I walked onto the set of ‘Punky Brewster,’ a show about a little girl who was abandoned by her mother in a grocery store. I think of it now and smile as I imagine them pitching the series. A show about a kid whose parents abandoned her at the tender age of seven… and it’s a comedy! Then she narrowly escapes being sent to an orphanage… an orphanage!
“This wasn’t a drama — or a novel by Dickens — this was a prime-time sitcom on NBC. Amazing. Even more amazing, Punky wasn’t saved from the orphanage by a mom and a dad with a big house and a backyard. Instead, she and her dog, Brandon, were taken in by a grumpy old man. And together they made a family.”
Tuesday (June 28, 2011) night, I had the utter pleasure of meeting the sweet, soft spoken La Toya Jackson at her book signing for Starting Over
I went to the event as both press and a true fan and happy that I was able to express to La Toya my heartfelt appreciation for the wisdom, kindness and lightheartedness she displayed on the latest season of Celebrity Apprentice. If you watched her on that show, you know what I mean. If you didn’t, the gist of it is that La Toya always remained her humble self despite the fact that all of the women on the show ganged up on her, some in the most vile and disrespectful ways. La Toya never threw mud back and only expressed forgiveness when given a chance to speak. It was refreshing to see a woman being a lady on reality TV these days.
In her new tell-all memoir, La Toya pays tribute to her late brother, Michael Jackson, revealing intimate moments she shared with the deeply troubled pop legend.
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| Rick and Kathy Hilton With Latoya Jackson and Jackson’s manager, Jeffre Phillips |
La Toya was the first of MJ’s sibling to arrive at the hospital after Michael was rushed there two years ago, and as the informant on his death certificate, she noticed suspicious details and demanded a second autopsy. For the first time, she unveils shocking behind-the-scenes dealings that she believes led to her brother’s demise and she provides unprecedented insight into the destruction of one of the most dynamic artists in history.
La Toya claims there was a conspiracy to murder Michael. “People come into your life, wiggle their way in, control you, manipulate, control your funds, your finances, everything that you have,” she told Piers Morgan on CNN last week. She said her brother told her right before his death: “La Toya, I’m going to be murdered for my music publishing catalogue and my estate.”
La Toya has been consistent in her allegations since Michael’s passing. In her memoir, La Toya offers more detail on who wanted Michael dead in her opinion and reveals how much MJ himself knew about the plot. She told Morgan: “Michael told me that they were going to murder him. He was afraid for his life. I believe that when Michael walked in that house that night, whatever it was that greeted him, he knew that his end was upon him. And as soon as he had passed, some of the very people he had expressed suspicions about now controlled his estate.”
Although Dr. Conrad Murray, Michael’s private physician, will solely stand trial for MJ’s death, La Toya suggests he is not even at the center of the conspiracy to kill MJ. “I truly feel Dr Murray was simply the fall guy,” she told Extra. “I think it’s too easy to blame him. I think the investigation needs to go … further.”
Actor Flex Alexander, wife recording artist Shanice and their children Elijah Alexander and Imani Alexander
SPOTTED: Bethenny Frankel at a book signing at Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles, CA June 20, 2011.
Fans lined up for hours for a chance at a meet and greet with Frankel, the star of the hit Bravo series, Bethenny Ever After, and formerly Real Housewives of New York City. Oh, and Skating with the Stars.
Frankel signed copies of her new book — the New York Times Bestseller, A Place of Yes
SPOTTED: Stephen “Steve-O” Glover at Barnes & Noble at The Grove June 14, 2011 for a book signing of Professional Idiot: A Memoir
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| Steve-O signs book for the first fan in line! |
SPOTTED: Sugar Ray Leonard at Barnes & Noble at The Grove Monday June 13, 2011 for a book signing of his The Big Fight: My Life In and Out of the Ring
Sugar Ray Leonard’s brutally honest and uplifting memoir reveals in intimate detail for the first time the complex man behind the boxer. The Olympic hero, multichampionship winner, and beloved athlete waged his own personal battle with depression, rage, addiction, and greed.
Coming from a tumultuous, impoverished household and a dangerous neighborhood on the outskirts of Washington, D.C., in the 1970s, Sugar Ray Leonard rose swiftly and skillfully through the ranks of amateur boxing-and eventually went on to win a gold medal in the 1976 Olympics. With an extremely ill father and no endorsement deals, Leonard decided to go pro.
The Big Fight takes readers behind the scenes of a notoriously corrupt sport and chronicles the evolution of a champion, as Leonard prepares for the greatest fights of his life-against Marvin Hagler, Roberto Duran, Tommy Hearns, and Wilfred Benitez. At the same time Leonard fearlessly reveals his own contradictions and compulsions, his infidelity, and alcohol and cocaine abuse.
With honesty, humor, and hard-won perspective, Leonard comes to terms with both triumph and struggle-and presents a gripping portrait of remarkable strength, courage, and resilience, both in and out of the ring.
SPOTTED: Chaz Bono
outside of Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles Monday May 23, 2011 as he was arriving for his book signing for Transition: The Story of How I Became a Man
Press was not allowed at this book signing, so, sorry, I could not take pics for you from the actual event.
SPOTTED: Shania Twain at Barnes & Noble at The Grove in Los Angeles Thursday May 12, 2011 for a book signing of her From This Moment On
Twain recently revealed that she is physically losing her voice as the result of the emotional hell she went through after her divorce. All of the feelings which she repressed actually ended up damaging her vocal chords to the point that she is now suffering from a condition called dysphonia (meaning difficulty in speaking).
Spotted: Darren Criss of Glee at Barnes & Noble at The Grove April 22 to sign newly-released copies of Warblers very own album, Glee: The Music Presents The Warblers
