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May 25, 2006

Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.  The chant of most at one point during their childhood was recently used by Johnny Gill when I asked him what he had to say about all of the talk that he and Eddie Murphy are lovers.  The singer was celebrating the kick off of the New Edition tour when we talked over a lunch at Copland's Restaurant.  "Ignorance, it is complete ignorance,"   Johnny said before I could get the question out.  "If God is for you who can be against you," Gill continued.  Since Eddie Murphy's divorce from his wife Nicole , a former model and mother of his five children, there has been a great deal of talk that the comedian and crooner are a couple and in fact it has been strongly implied that the alleged relationship of the two men was the reason for the divorce.  "Those who have tried to destroy or assassinate my character, guess what?    I am still here," Johnny said passionately. Due to the tone and facial expression of Johnny it was obvious the rumors had taken a toll on the singer.

"I will continue to move forward," Johnny added. Gill is determined to not allow this to get him down.  Johnny Gill shouted, "Sticks and stones my break my bones, but words will never hurt me!"  In effort to break some of the tension I reminded Johnny that all publicity is good publicity especially when you are going on tour and set to release a new solo album this summer.  A more relaxed Gill was able to share a laugh with me.  Continuing to remind me that he was standing strong we begin to discuss his new album.  However, it is amazing that Johnny never mentioned the name of his rumored lover, Eddie Murphy , throughout our entire conversation.    Johnny's new CD will be full of hot collaborations and the style he is known for by all his fans.  "I am going to do what people want and expect of me, there is a tremendous void musically that my CD will fill," Johnny explained,  "This album will be for the grown and sexy." 

Wow!  A white man blackballed in America!  For more than two decades, Rather , NBC's Tom Brokaw and the late Peter Jennings of ABC dominated television as the faces of the evening news and whenever big stories broke you expected to see these men telling the story.  Well, that is no longer the case for Dan Rather at CBS.  The network confirmed it was cutting ties with Rather , who joined the stations in 1962 and spent nearly a quarter-century as the public face until things went sour over a story about the president's military service.  A tense Rather stated the network could not agree on what would be next for him at CBS.  Dean McManus' did not have a hard time making a decision to get a fresh new face for the evening news.  Like President Bush , Sean McManus, a fellow Texan, does not have a problem making a tough decision.  

Six months after Rather narrated the report on President Bush's military service in the midst of the presidential campaign Rather signed off the air on March 9, 2005, after 24 years as the " CBS Evening News " anchor.  Rather contributed eight stories to " 60 Minutes " this past season, but he complained it was not enough work to satisfy him.  Allegedly CBS offered him a new contract with no assignments.  Well, it is not difficult for one to logically concur that Karl Rove has grind his ax most recently on the neck of Dan Rather .  How is it that a journalist that interviewed Saddam Hussein , covered President John F. Kennedy's assassination, the Vietnam War , civil-rights struggles, the Nixon White House , to name a few does not have a network of note that is publicly interested in him.  Except for the potential HDNet, a tiny high-definition network on some cable and satellite systems.  Dan Rather is out due to his publicly calling into question President Bush's military service and that is the bottom line.  Rove said publicly that you win at all cost and he has succeeded again. 

Divas Raising Hell Continues ...Last week in Manhattan Beyonce , her Mother Tina and sister, Solange Knowles , were having dinner at Nobu restaurant with two people they thought were just winners of an Ebay auction for VH1's Save the Music Foundation.  When it turned out the "winners" had a hidden agenda; they were members of People For the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA).  The over aggressive group ambushed and set the diva up and captured approximately 3 minutes of the incident on tape.  Shortly after everyone placed their orders, the PETA members started in on Beyonce with small talk about their use of fur in the House of Dereon clothing line.  Before the members of PETA were escorted away, they pulled out a portable DVD player and showed a tape of Pamela Anderson's attack on the fur industry, which highlights graphic footage of the process of killing animal for their fur.  It was at that point that your hear Tina Knowles telling them to get out.  Meanwhile Beyonce is seen just sitting there totally stunned or pissed.  Forget about animals!  Did they forget how African Americans got over here; we were treated worst than animals.  When there is a day of equality, justice, and peace for all Human Kind then we will become concerned with the treatment of animals. 

The chemistry is breaking down among the women on " The View ," if Star Jones and Joy continue it is going to come to blows right on the set.  I am growing tired of the chicks and their caddy behavior and cheap shots at each other.  Additionally, the Republican   Elizabeth Hasslebeck gets on my nerves with her false sense of reality and ideals due to her privileged background. However, it is seriously time for the show to be overhauled or for them to say good-bye.   The once good discussions as of late have consistently been arguments and frequent use of the word Bitch has made the show far too common for my taste.  My last statement brings me to a question that I want to ask of my readers.  Has the word Bitch become a term of endearment among woman similar to how this use of the word Nigga is for African Americans?  (E-mail your responses to MrMcCray@Obnoxious.tv )

Eminem and Kim Mathers have continued with divorce proceedings in a private hearing, which took place yesterday. Eminem was at the Michigan courthouse, where Kim seeks alimony, her attorney fees paid and joint custody of daughter, Hailie.  Not so sure who will be the better parent for the child. 

Well, Patti is not the only diva to breakdown on stage.  " The Queen of Hip-Hop ," Mary J Blige reportedly started crying on stage at the Wembley Arena in the UK. There was no obvious reason for the episode, but it appeared that she was moved by Bono of U2's lyrics on " One Love ." She cried in the middle of another song, I heard, and stated that she should have been there for her father.

Beyonce will debut her new single " Déjà Vu " to open the 2006 BET Awards on June 27, 2006, while the squallier of squalliers, Prince will close the show.  Other confirmed performers include nominee all too common Jamie Foxx ,   Busta Rhymes , Ne-Yo , Chris Brown , Keyshia Cole , Lil Wayne , and Mary Mary , plus The Queen of Hip-Hop Mary J. Blige , and T.I. will also perform.  The Lifetime Achievement Award will be given to Chaka Khan , Humanitarian Award recipient Harry Belafonte and presenters Vivica A. Fox , OutKast , Shawn and Marlon Wayans , and brother Damon will be the host.  Yours truly, me, the one and only Obnoxious Columnist, William G. McCray III, will be on the red carpet getting all the news first hand and will have the hot interviews on my site www.Obnoxious.tv     so stay tuned.