Vine Star Curtis Lepore On Trial for Allegedly Raping Vine Star GF

Vine Star Curtis Lepore

On Trial for Allegedly Raping Vine Star GF

Vine megastar Curtis Lepore was in court Tuesday ... facing charges of raping Vine star girlfriend Jessi Smiles while she was sleeping, TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... Lepore was arrested in October -- and released on $100,000 bail -- but it flew under the radar.  During Tuesday's hearing he pled not guilty.

Here's the back story.  We're told Jessi flew to see Curtis in L.A. last August but things didn't go well and they broke up. Jessi stayed in L.A. and a few days later got a concussion while shooting a Vine video.

Sources close to Jessi tell TMZ ... Curtis then called her and offered to help her while she was recovering.  The victim claims Curtis came over, Jessi fell asleep and that's when he allegedly raped her

The day after the incident, Jessi tweeted, "Be careful of who you trust. Always be cautious for your safety. Be strong and don't let your guard down..."

It's pretty insane. Curtis and Jessi's relationship was a HUGE deal in the Vine world -- they initially got in touch via the social media platform last summer and subsequently met in person in NYC ... in front of hundreds of their Vine fans.

Curtis' lawyer tells TMZ, "Things are not always as they appear and there are two sides to every story."  

BTW ... Jessi gave us permission to use her name.

Source : http://www.tmz.com/

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Winner of black rhino hunting auction: My $350,000 will help save the species

Winner of black rhino hunting auction: My $350,000 will help save the species

Corey Knowlton is on edge sitting inside a Las Vegas hotel room, surrounded by a private security detail, explaining why he spent $350,000 for the chance to hunt a black rhinoceros in the southern African nation of Namibia.

"If I sound emotional, it's because I have people threatening my kids," Knowlton told CNN. "It's because I have people threatening to kill me right now [that] I'm having to talk to the FBI and have private security to keep my children from being skinned alive and shot at."

Knowlton was outed over social media as the winner of the Dallas Safari Club's auction for a black rhino hunting permit from the Namibian government last weekend. It didn't take long for the threats and vitriol to start pouring in.

"You are a BARBARIAN. People like you need to be the innocent that are hunted," posted one woman on Knowlton's Facebook page.

Some sounded even more sinister. "I find you and I will KILL you," read another threat. "I have friends who live in the area and will have you in there sights also," wrote another commenter.

"A hunter afraid of being hunted?! How do you think the rhino feels idiot?" responded one woman to Knowlton's fears.

Despite the backlash, Knowlton has decided to engage the raging debate over how to protect an endangered species, such as the black rhino, by putting down his own money to help save the species and raise awareness about wildlife conservation.

"I respect the black rhino," said Knowlton. "A lot of people say, 'Do you feel like a bigger man?' or 'Is this a thrill for you?' The thrill is knowing that we are preserving wildlife resources, not for the next generation, but for eons."

Knowlton, 35, is a Dallas-based hunting consultant for The Hunting Consortium, an international guide service. He's also the co-host of a hunting show on The Outdoor Channel called "Jim Shockey's The Professionals." Knowlton's online biography says he's hunted more than 120 species on almost every continent.

Hunting has a long been a passion of his -- Knowlton said he started hunting as a young boy. He said he grew up poor, but made a good living in oil production.

"I'm a hunter. I want to experience a black rhino. I want to be there and be a part of it. I believe in the cycle of life. I don't believe that meat, you know, comes from the grocery store. I believe that animal died and I respect it," Knowlton said Thursday night on CNN's "Piers Morgan Live."

He describes himself as a passionate conservationist and desperately wants to explain to his critics why hunting one old black rhino can help save critically endangered species around the world. He knows it's a difficult conversation full of scathing-hot emotion.

Humane Society: We'll block his trophy

The Humane Society opposed the Dallas Safari Club Auction and says it plans to fight Knowlton's efforts to bring the black rhino trophy into the United States.

If Knowlton does hunt and kill the black rhino, he'll need a special permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to import the animal into the country under the Endangered Species Act.

Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of The Humane Society, wrote in an online blog post that killing one endangered animal to save the species is an "Orwellian idea" and worries that it will inspire hunters to pay millions of dollars for the chance to kill orangutans, elephants or tigers.

"Where will it end?" wrote Pacelle. "The first rule of protecting the rarest animals in the world is to protect each living member of that species."

Helicopters versus drones: The cost of the war on rhinos

But Knowlton argues that, in this instance, killing one black rhino will protect the species throughout Namibia and that this idea is supported by scientists and conservationists around the world.

Of the world's approximately 5,000 black rhinos, about 1,700 are in Namibia.

Knowlton says the Namibian government has identified a handful of black rhinos that can be hunted. These are animals that are old, no longer capable of breeding and are considered a dangerous threat to other younger animals.

He said the threat to the rhino is from its own kind. "One of the other ear-tagged killer rhinos is going to injure it. And then either lions or hyenas are going to drag it down. It's going to die [in] a horrible manner, slowly."

So Knowlton argues, why not let a hunter pay a massive amount of money to take out a threat to the rest of the species. The Dallas Safari Club says the $350,000 paid by Knowlton will be donated to the Namibian government's black rhino conservation efforts.

"As much as I would love them all to live forever, they are going to die," said Knowlton. "The older males are killing each other, and something has to be done about it."

Knowlton's supporters: Science backs him up

Knowlton's supporters say this conservation strategy is based in smart science. The International Union for Conservation of Nature supported the Dallas Safari Club's black rhino hunting permit auction.

The union says its mission is to work with governments and conservation groups around the world to find "practical solutions" to conservation efforts around the world.

It also says "trophy hunting is a fundamental pillar of Namibia's conservation approach and instrumental in its success." And that "well-managed recreational hunting and trophy hunting" have had a positive impact in "stimulating population increases for rhino."

But other animal rights organizations have criticized this conservation strategy and argue that the better focus would be eco-tourism, raising money from people willing to pay to see endangered animals up close in the wild.

Knowlton says the intense and controversial publicity leading up to the Dallas Safari Club auction scared several serious bidders away. Knowlton said going into the auction there were about 10 serious bidders, but by the time the bidding started, that number had dwindled to about three.

"It was the most unfortunate thing. There were people willing to spend $500,000 to a million dollars," said Knowlton. "After what I'm going through now, I understand why they decided not to do it."

Knowlton says he does not yet when he'll schedule his hunting expedition to Namibia. A great deal of planning and preparation must be done, he said.

Knowlton wants to preserve the black rhino's hide and then donate the rhino meat to needy communities in Namibia.

"I speak with my heart. I'm passionate about this," said Knowlton. "I think with the money that I contributed, with everything that is at stake and everything there is to be gained by the world to learn about sustainable use, I think this could be the greatest experience of my life."

Knowlton says if the hunt doesn't go perfectly it could also be one of the worst experiences of his life.

"I don't think it makes me a bigger man; I actually think, Piers, I think it could make me a dead man," he told CNN's Morgan.

"This is probably the most dangerous situation that I'll ever be in outside of walking around right now with all the people that want to kill me."

Source : http://edition.cnn.com/

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Teen killed after shooting several people, including 2 ATF agents, police say

Teen killed after shooting several people, including 2 ATF agents, police say

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

All the victims shot by the 19-year-old are expected to survive

Two ATF agents were in the area and helped search for the suspect

They both were shot

A teen was shot and killed Thursday night in Oklahoma after shooting several people, including two ATF agents, police said.

All the victims shot by the 19-year-old are expected to survive, police said.

The teen, identified as Henry Jackson, was killed at 9:30 p.m. Thursday after going on a two-day crime spree, said Sgt. Ryan Hunnicutt of the Ardmore Police Department.

Authorities say the incident started on Wednesday night when a 19-year-woman called 911 and said she had been shot in the arm.

About four blocks away from that shooting, another man was shot in the hip Thursday afternoon. Officers began to gather information that pointed to Jackson as a suspect in both incidents, Hunnicutt said.

Local police officers were searching for Jackson and two ATF agents in the area for a different matter joined the search.

The agents found Jackson in a car Thursday evening. He opened fire on them, wounding them, Hunnicutt said.

One of the agents was treated at the scene, the other was hospitalized with minor injuries.

Later, Ardmore police saw Jackson traveling in a Ford Taurus and a chase ensued. The suspect fired at officers, Hunnicutt said, and officers fired back, killing him.

Source : http://edition.cnn.com/

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5 things we learned from Oscar nominations

5 things we learned from Oscar nominations

The nominations for the Academy Awards were presented Thursday morning, and as always there were trends and surprises. Here are a few things we learned:

1. Make way for older women.

It's not for nothing that one of best jokes from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler at the Golden Globes referred to the lack of meaty roles for actresses of a certain age: "Meryl Streep (is) so brilliant in 'August: Osage County,' proving that there are still great parts in Hollywood for Meryl Streeps over 60," said Fey. And yes, Streep was nominated for an Oscar (for best actress) as well.

But also nominated were Judi Dench, 79, and perhaps more surprisingly, June Squibb, 84. Squibb is a longtime character actress -- you may remember her as Elderly Woman in "Far From Heaven" or Mrs. Cone in an episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm" -- who got a chance to shine as Bruce Dern's exasperated yet caring wife in "Nebraska." In fact, of the 10 actresses nominated for either best actress or best supporting actress, six are over 40 and two others -- Amy Adams and Sally Hawkins -- are in their late 30s.

2. Diversity, but no diversity.

This year featured a number of notable movies starring or directed by people of color, including "Lee Daniels' The Butler," "Fruitvale Station," "42," "Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom" and "12 Years a Slave." But of that group, only "12 Years" got any support from the Oscars, with nine nominations. "Mandela" picked up a nod for a U2 song; "Fruitvale" -- despite showcasing rising talents Michael B. Jordan and director Ryan Coogler -- got nothing. And despite a $100 million box office -- and raves for performers Forest Whitaker and Oprah Winfrey -- "The Butler" also came up with zero. During the Globes show, there was a Twitter hashtag protesting the lack of diversity: #notbuyingit. You'll probably see it again on Oscar night.

2014 awards season: Does diversity matter more than wins?

3. Where's Tom Hanks? What about Oprah?

Tom Hanks is one of the most beloved film stars in Hollywood. He's a successful producer and two-time Oscar winner. After a sluggish few years, marked by "Cloud Atlas," "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close" and "Larry Crowne," he was back in the good graces at the box office and with critics, thanks to "Captain Phillips" and "Saving Mr. Banks." The result? No Oscar nominations. Maybe he split the vote; maybe voters just weren't that impressed. (They certainly weren't by "Mr. Banks.")

As for Winfrey -- also a successful producer and personality -- the theory is that "The Butler's" summer release hurt its chances. But it was still a surprise that her name wasn't listed for either the Oscars or the Golden Globes. Better luck at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, Oprah.

4. There are no sure things.

The handicappers were wrong about a lot. Take a gander:

• Snubbed: Robert Redford, "All Is Lost." An almost wordless solo performance goes for naught at the Oscars. "Lost," indeed. 

• Snubbed: The Coen brothers, "Inside Llewyn Davis." Despite their offbeat production, Ethan and Joel have become Oscar favorites -- even if it's just a scriptwriting nod. Not this year. Llewyn Davis will have to keep walking the streets (probably with a waterlogged shoe). 

• Snubbed: Emma Thompson, "Saving Mr. Banks." So much for "Banks" despite its Disney pedigree. 

• Snubbed: James Gandolfini, "Enough Said." The academy thought "Enough" was apparently too much, since neither Julia Louis-Dreyfus nor Nicole Holofcener's script were picked, either. 

• Surprise!: Sally Hawkins, "Blue Jasmine." The academy loves Woody Allen screenplays (he got nominated, too), and Hawkins wasn't overlooked. 

• Surprise!: "Philomena." A small, character-driven movie about a woman searching for her son? Best picture, best actress (Dench) and best adapted screenplay nominations are the prizes.

Special coverage: All things awards season

5. Love for "Dallas Buyers Club."

Perhaps "Hustle," "12 Years" and "Gravity" will duke it out for best picture. But remember "no sure things," because when it came to audience response at the nominations, "Dallas Buyers Club" was the clear winner, greeted with cheers for every nomination. It has an Oscar-friendly subject -- a heroic battle against AIDS -- and strong performances by Matthew McConaughey and Jared Leto. It received a surprising six nominations.

The Academy Awards are March 2.

Source : http://edition.cnn.com/

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'Gilligan's Island' Professor, actor Russell Johnson, dead at 89

'Gilligan's Island' Professor, actor Russell Johnson, dead at 89

Actor Russell Johnson, best known as Professor in the 1960s TV sitcom "Gilligan's Island," died Thursday, his agent said. Johnson was 89.

Johnson played the iconic role of Professor Roy Hinkley, whose scientific schemes to get the castaways rescued were always foiled by Gilligan's bumbling.

He died at his home in Washington, where he lived with his wife, Connie. She and their daughter, Kimberly, were at his side, said agent Mike Eisenstadt. Johnson is also survived by a stepson, Court, and a grandson, he said.

Johnson worked up until his death, signing autographs over the holidays, said Eisenstadt. He called Johnson's death "unexpected."

The chief deputy coroner in Kitsap County, Washington, told CNN that Johnson died from natural causes.

Johnson was "just a positive and nice guy" who always treated people with respect, his agent said.

His acting career began in the early 1950s with many jobs as a character actor on television. He played Marshal Gib Scott in two seasons of "Black Saddle," a Western that ran in 1959 and 1960.

Johnson acted in dozens of television shows after the four seasons on "Gilligan's Island," but his career seemed stranded on its own island because of the popular sitcom role.

A noteworthy big screen role was as a nuclear physicist in the 1955 science fiction film "This Island Earth."

Share your memories

Johnson was in Ray Bradbury's 1953 sci-fi classic "It Came From Outer Space."

Before becoming an actor, Johnson served in the U.S. Army Air Forces during World War II. He was on a B-24 Liberator when it was shot down during a bombing raid over the Philippines in 1945, according to his official biography, and used his G.I. Bill benefits to pay for acting school after the war.

Johnson, in a 2004 interview for the Archive of American Television said the success of "Gilligan's Island, which he never expected to last more than the initial order of 13 episodes, was the result of the "great chemistry" of the cast.

Tina Louise, who played the glamorous Hollywood starlet Ginger on "Gilligan's Island said she was " very saddened to hear of the passing of Russell Johnson."

"My prayers and condolences go out to his wife Constance and his family," Louise said. "He will always be in our hearts and remembered from Gilligan's island as part of American pop culture history. He will truly be missed."

Advice to young actors

Johnson's advice to young actors was to "prepare yourself."

"Most of us have to really learn how to do what we do, and that takes some studying and being part of an acting group," he said. "Preparation is everything, and that means studying."

Another important ingredient to acting success is perseverance, he said. "You can have all the talent in the world, but if you don't persevere, if you don't stick to it, it doesn't mean anything."

Source : http://edition.cnn.com/

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Colby fire above Glendora burns homes, spews smoke over L.A. Basin

Colby fire above Glendora burns homes, spews smoke over L.A. Basin

The fast-moving blaze is probably the harbinger of a rare winter fire season sparked by the driest conditions on record.

A fast-moving wildfire in the hills above Glendora burned at least 1,700 acres of withered brush and five homes Thursday, and sent a smoky pall over much of the Los Angeles Basin — the likely harbinger of a rare winter fire season sparked by the driest conditions on record.

Weather officials had been warning about the fire danger for months, capped by a January that had the windy, nosebleed feel of October.

The native chaparral that burns so easily in normal circumstances was parched and ready to combust.

The fire sent smoke and ash south and west toward the Pacific Ocean. People as far away as Huntington Beach and Santa Monica smelled the wood smoke and saw their shadows cast in an eerie red light.

Commuters on the 10 Freeway reported seeing the flames from as far away as West Covina, with cars caked in dust and ash 30 miles from the fire.

Winds were gusting to 30 mph Thursday morning and were projected to climb to 40 mph by Thursday night, said Scott Sukup of the National Weather Service. With relative humidity expected to remain in the single digits through Friday and temperatures forecast to hover in the 80s and 90s, he said, "it's not going to get any better" for firefighters.

The blaze was first reported about 5:30 a.m. Three men arrested later by police said it started with an illegal campfire they were using to keep warm in the pre-dawn chill. A gust of wind blew embers down the canyon.

About 550 firefighters and support staff, with two tanker planes and eight helicopters, scrambled to keep the flames from spreading into Glendora's northern neighborhoods or moving west into parts of Azusa.

Mandatory evacuations were ordered for all residents north of Sierra Madre Avenue and east of San Gabriel Canyon Road. By late evening, those orders had been lifted for many neighborhoods.

Brad Smith, 30, was dropping off a friend on Englewild Drive shortly after 5:30 a.m. when he saw the flickering glow about a quarter of a mile away. He rushed toward it and started going door to door to wake up residents.

Within minutes, the heat was upon him. "It got really scary," Smith said. "People were just getting their stuff out and really rushing with what little time they had."

Rita Abouchedid drove her three teenage children to their grandparents' house and then returned to their home on Kregmont Drive, which her husband built a decade ago.

"My husband didn't want to leave, we couldn't leave him alone," she said.

As she stood on her roof, other family and friends had returned to use hoses on the flames as they advanced into her backyard. Palm trees lining her street had caught fire and were raining burning debris, and electrical transformers were arcing. The smoke made it hard to see.

"It's like a dream, it isn't real," Abouchedid said.

Meteorologists say there is no end in sight to the high-pressure ridge over the Pacific that is keeping storms offshore and parching the state from Humboldt to San Diego.

Federal fire officials are well past being able to identify a "fire season," so a large blaze in January is no longer seen as an anomaly.

California's year-round potential for fire comes with a steep cost. CalFire and U.S. Forest Service officials maintain a system of hiring seasonal fire crews that are laid off as the traditional fire season fades. But when the winter fire outlook factors in the state's prolonged drought and super-dry fuels, fire bosses must make a calculation: weighing the expense of keeping crews on standby versus scrambling to find appropriate resources to throw at an unexpected winter fire.

Likewise, costly firefighting equipment such as helicopters and water-scooping planes are not usually kept on contract past the fall months. Thus, when a blaze is sparked at this time of year, agencies pay a premium to hire aircraft at a moment's notice.

A red flag warning was extended for the foothills and other parts of Los Angeles County through 3 p.m. Friday, said Sukup of the weather service.

A second brush fire started late Thursday morning near Pyramid Lake and burned two acres before being knocked down by crews by 12:30 p.m.

The South Coast Air Quality Management District warned that air quality was expected to quickly decline to unhealthful levels across the region and remain poor. Officials said residents from the San Gabriel Valley to the Pomona Valley, in particular, should avoid outdoor activities, and that the smoke and ash could affect people with lung and heart disease and asthma as far south as Long Beach.

Two firefighters and two residents suffered minor injuries.

Glendora Police Chief Tim Staab said the fire started near where Colby Trail meets Glendora Mountain Road, an area that is not a designated camping spot.

The three men were tossing pieces of paper onto the fire, Staab said, when a gust of wind "just blew embers all over the place."

"They got scared and ran," Staab told The Times. "Two ran in one direction, one ran in the other."

Glendora police Cpl. Nancy Miranda said she first spotted two of them when she was helping with evacuations on North Palm Drive. A resident pointed to them running down a wash alongside the road, apparently trying not to be seen.

When she stopped the disheveled pair, they said they had lost track of their friend. They were covered in ash and smelled like smoke, but denied starting the fire.

"I knew immediately that something was off," Miranda said.

She searched their backpacks and, finding marijuana and cigarettes, took them to the Glendora police headquarters.

Their friend was picked up by forest officials as he walked down Glendora Mountain Road, and police took him into custody.

Eventually one of them admitted accidentally starting the fire and was "apologetic," Staab said. The trio had been sitting around a campfire "trying to stay warm," he said, when a "gust of wind came up."

"There's absolutely no evidence that these three men started the fire on purpose," Staab said

The suspects — Clifford Eugene Henry, 22, of Glendora; Jonathan Carl Jarrell, 23, of Irwindale; and Steven Robert Aguirre, 21, a Los Angeles transient — were arrested on suspicion of recklessly starting a fire and were being held in lieu of $20,000 bail.

"They just didn't show very much common sense this morning in starting this campfire," Staab said. "Especially when it's breezy out? Especially when it's the driest season on record? Please."

At the western edge of the smoke and flames, Ana Vasquez stared up at a ridgeline trying to spot her husband who was spraying fire hoses and hacking at brush to protect an avocado grove her family has owned for more than 50 years.

He called every few minutes. Her tone was desperate.

"He's up there somewhere and it's getting hairy," she said.

A few blocks to the west, dozens of firetrucks and their personnel were gathering along San Gabriel Canyon Road in Azusa to prevent the blaze from entering Azusa Canyon and threatening hundreds of homes in a community known as Mountain Cove.

n the upper reaches of Glendora, Ron Galloway, 63, stared at the smoldering remains of a guesthouse at a historic mansion once owned by the Singer family, where he has lived for four years.

Spanish-style arches were all that remained in front of heaps of broken roof tiles and smoking lumber. Galloway's Toyota MR2 was burned to its frame, its wheel rims melted like mercury on the ground.

"I lost everything. How am I going to survive?" Galloway said.

The mansion was built in 1924 and later owned by the heirs of the Singer family, of the Singer sewing machine company.

When he saw the fire, Galloway got out with just his cellphone and the clothes he was wearing. His roommate, Rudy Rosas, 47, grabbed his Social Security card, birth certificate, two pairs of pants and two shirts and rode to the bottom of the hill on his bicycle. He watched the fire crackle across the hill as others joined him.

Palm trees rained embers down into the neighborhood.

When a plume of thick black smoke spiraled into the air, Galloway said he knew the building and all his possessions were gone.

At least 11 people will be displaced by the destruction of the Catholic retreat. In all, officials said 17 structures were damaged. By Thursday afternoon, firefighters said they had finally stopped the blaze's forward spread.

Source : http://www.latimes.com/

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