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  • 'Chasing UFOs' Stars Blast Their Own Show

    It's been said there's no such thing as bad publicity, but when the stars of your own show give it a thumbs-down, that might be the exception.

    The National Geographic Channel premiered "Chasing UFOs," an eight-episode reality TV show last month, focusing on a trio of investigators traversing America in search of the truth of unexplained UFO reports, alleged alien abductions and reported military cover-ups.

    On the heels of less-than-positive reviews and viewer comments, two of the show's stars -- James Fox and Ben McGee -- revealed their own dissatisfaction with "Chasing UFOs," complaining that the show had placed more emphasis on entertainment value than a serious look at the UFO subject.

        Fox: "I know how disappointed all of you are. I am too. It's not the show that was sold to both myself and scientist Ben. Two months into it, we were off to a great start; good locations, solid witnesses and some opportunities for Ben to apply his field research as a geologist at some crash sites. Very exciting stuff. Unfortunately, when we actually got out in the field, we began to realize that they were more interested in poking around at night than allocating the time necessary during the day as, apparently (so we were told), Americans love watching others sneak around at night from the comfort of their couches. For the most part, it was gratuitous nighttime baloney. ... I promise I'll either quit or change my position within the show because at least I can make it all make some sense. The show does get a bit better further down the road, but not a lot. ... My credibility and reputation has, deservedly, taken a serious hit."

        McGee: "When we were brought onboard, the project certainly had a much harder inclination than its final realization, and as a career scientist, I was excited that NatGeo was at the helm (unaware of their desire for a major shift in programming flavor). Our intentions were very sincere. ... James and I both had expectations and (for our own reasons) hopes of an ultimately serious product. We both saw the project heading i
    n a different direction as time went on and were powerless to influence it. Injecting science into mainstream media is also problematic, and I am suffering heat in my own circles for the lack thereof on the show."

    Fox and McGee wrote their comments on the Facebook page of New York Times best-selling author Leslie Kean.

    NatGeo put up a brave face and tried to spin the criticism, suggesting what the two stars said could be taken out of context.

    "I think, naturally, they're going to get more comfortable with their roles and they're all figuring out what their roles are in the series and how best to be authentic and represent their point of view in a way that viewers can relate to," said Michael Cascio, NatGeo Channel's executive vice president of programming.

    Missing Arkansas girl found safe; couple she lived with found dead

    A missing 12-year-old girl has been found safe after authorities discovered the bodies of the couple she lived with, Arkansas police said.

    Amber Whitlow was found Saturday night in Memphis, Tennessee, local police said. She was found with her 33-year-old brother, Antonio Whitlow, who is a suspect in her abduction as well as a double homicide, Memphis police spokeswoman Alyssa Moore said.

    Antonio Whitlow is in custody, Moore said. Amber was taken to a children's hospital as a precaution, and the Tennessee and Arkansas departments of child services were notified.

    Earlier Saturday, the man and woman whom Amber lived with were found dead inside a home in Little Rock, Arkansas, police said.

    Authorities received a call from a man who attended the same church as the slain couple and had found the woman just inside the home's doorway, Sgt. Cassandra Davis said.

    Officers investigated and found that woman and the dead man, who was further inside the residence. Both of the deceased were in their 60s, Davis said.

    Authorities have not released the names of the couple, nor have they indicated how they died. But Davis said Amber is either the daughter or granddaughter of the deceased couple.

    Sherlyn Chopra, Bollywood Actress, To Be Playboy's 1st Indian Model

    Sherlyn Chopra, a Bollywood film actor, will become the first woman from India to strip naked in Playboy.

    The 28-year-old knockout wrote to the magazine and suggested the idea herself, the BBC reported. They got back to her within a few days to accept.

    Fans will have to wait till the November issue circulates to get a glimpse of Chopra. A press conference earlier this week heralded the addition of a "Bollywood goddess" to the pantheon of beauties who've appeared on the pages of Hugh Hefner's magazine.

    But her decision to pose caused a controversy in her native India where the granddaddy of all adult magazines is banned. A critic cited by the Daily Mail wrote "one wonders if Sherlyn Chopra’s pictures wound a woman’s integrity."

    Chopra, who has had small roles in a handful of Bollywood flicks, is unfazed by the criticism.

    "I have become the first Indian to pose naked for Playboy," she said to the BBC, "and nobody can take away that achievement from me,"

    She uploaded snapshots from her tour of the famous Playboy mansions in Los Angeles to her Twitter account.

    Invicta FC 2 'McMann vs. Baszler' Results: Reaction for Every Fight

    Invicta FC will hold their second show in the same location as their first, Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kansas.

    The 14-bout card will be streamed live and free on InvictaFC.com at 7 p.m. ET.

    In the main event of the evening top prospect and Olympic silver medalist Sara McMann takes on her toughest foe to date, Shayna Baszler.

    In the co-main, Strikeforce bantamweight Alexis Davis returns to action following her defeat to Sarah Kaufman in March to battle Hitomi Akano.


    Main Card
    Shayna Baszler (133.6) vs. Sara McMann (135.4)
    Hitomi Akano (135.8) vs. Alexis Davis (134)
    Kaitlin Young (135) vs. Liz Carmouche (135)
    Lacey Schuckman (115.4) vs. Ayaka Hamasaki (114.6)
    Raquel Pa'aluhi (134.4) vs. Amanda Nunes (135.4)
    Vanessa Porto (133.6) vs. Sarah D'Alelio (136.2)*
    Bethany Marshall (124) vs. Barb Honchak (124.2)
    Elina Nilsson (144.6) vs. Julia Budd (145.2)

    Preliminary Card
    Carla Esparza (115.2) vs. Sarah Schneider (116)
    Nicdali Rivera-Calanoc (105.2) vs. Angelica Chavez (105.4)
    Sarah Moras (134.8) vs. Raquel Pennington (134.4)
    Jessamyn Duke (135) vs. Suzie Montero (136)
    Cheryl Chan (124.2) vs. Jocelyn Lybarger (124.8)
    Jessica Philippus (107.2) vs. Liz McCarthy (104.2)*

    *Sarah D'Alelio was able to weigh-in under 136-pounds on her second weigh-in. Jessica Philippus was unable to cut more weight. The fight will still proceed and she will be penalized 25% of her fight purse.
    source

    Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh Will Keep Bikini Look at London Olympics

    Glory be to Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh-Jennings, who will maintain the old school by keeping the bikini look in the London Olympics.

    The New York Post's Marc Berman reports May-Treanor and other USA Olympic Volleyball athletes will still don bikinis despite a London rule that maintains players can now wear shorts and a T-shirt.

    This is hardly a matter of style or sexy undertakings from the part of the athletes. Simply, they wear what is comfortable and what got them to this stage in their respective careers.

    Kerri Walsh Opens Up About Her Athlete Crush

    Jen Kessy was one of the more vocal proponents of the bikini, and had this to say to The New York Post. She even goes so far as to cite the horrendous heat wave in London as one of the benefits.

        "We’re not uncomfortable in our bikinis. Growing up in southern California, that’s what you wear from when you’re a little kid to now in the summertime.

        "This is the most comfortable thing for us to wear...If it is cold, we will put clothes on. But we won’t be playing in shorts. For us, that’s not comfortable. You get sand everywhere in the pockets. But for others, it’s now their choice...If the weather stays like this, we’ll be in our bikinis all night."

    The report states the biggest reason for the change in clothing is for athletes from other countries and various religions who may be precluded from playing because of the dress code.

    Hi-res-91223450_crop_exact Christian Petersen/Getty Images

    Even Kessy sounds off on the great benefit of the new rule. The fact is, the US women may be more comfortable with less, but that sentiment hardly extends around the world. She finds any preclusion because of clothes, "not OK."

    This is a win-win across the board.

    Women who would rather play in shorts and shirt are allowed, as they should be from the start. We want the best athletes playing at their most comfortable.

    Uniform codes shouldn't deter anyone, because there is nothing Olympic about that.

    Ryan Lochte wins gold in 400 IM, Michael Phelps fails to medal in first race at London Games

    Michael Phelps’ reign as the world’s most dominant Olympic swimmer took a serious hit in his first race at the London Games.

    Ryan Lochte captured the gold medal in the 400-meter individual medley on Saturday, while Phelps finished fourth – failing to medal for the first time since the 2000 Summer Games in Sydney when he was just 15 years old. Lochte showed why he has been considered the world’s best swimmer over the last year, holding strong throughout the race before making his move in the backstroke and then steadily pulling away in the breaststroke and freestyle.

    And while Lochte’s performance was brilliant, Phelps' struggle was equally captivating as the race wore on. Phelps has typically been able to make his move in the butterfly leg of the medley and finish strong in the freestyle, but he struggled to make up ground or mount a charge in any of the four legs of the race.

    Japan’s 17-year-old Kosuke Hagino held off Phelps down the race's final 50 meters during the freestyle leg, touching at 4:08.94 and nudging Phelps off the medal stand. Phelps finished at 4:09.28.

    "It was a crappy race," Phelps said. "I felt fine for the first 200 meters and then I just don’t know. They just swam a better race – a smarter race than me. They were more prepared. That’s why they are on the medal stand."


    Phelps moved from third to second position in the second 50 meters of the race, but was never able to mount a serious charge from there. His splits gradually faded as the race went on, and he slipped from second to third during the second half of the backstroke leg. Hagino overtook Phelps in the front end of the freestyle and was never seriously threatened for third place.

    USA's Michael Phelps competes in a heat of the men's 400-meter individual medley at the Aquatics Centre in the Olympic Park during the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Saturday, July 28, 2012. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)Michael Phelps couldn't keep up in the men's 400m IM. (AP)Phelps arrived at his block in typical fashion – goggled up and under a set of headphones. He toweled off his block and shook his arms, loosening up before taking his perch. But his departure was far different than anything we’ve seen in an Olympic games. After touching, he stared at the video board in mixture of disgust, disbelief and anger.

    "The biggest thing is to get past this and move forward," Phelps said. "I have a bunch of other races. Hopefully we can finish a lot better than we started."

    Amy Childs Introduces Her New Boobs To The Sunshine

    When Amy Childs debuted her new boobs in a high-necked top earlier this month, we thought she may have turned over a new leaf.

    But this is AMY CHILDS we are talking about. They were never going to stay under wraps for long.

    And with the temperatures still riding high, there was no better excuse for the former TOWIE star to introduce her new pups to the sunshine.

    As she stepped out with current squeeze David Peters yesterday, Amy showed off her assets in a plunging maxi-dress.

    But Amy wrote in her new! magazine column this week she wasn't sure if David was a fan of the augmentation.

    "He hasn’t said, “Ooh, I like them!” He’s more like, “I want you to be happy and I want you to be comfortable”' she said.

    Well by the looks of this pic, we'd say it's probably safe to say he's a fan.

    London offers Olympics unlike any other

    As the Games of the 30th Olympiad take over this city steeped in so much history, London will be celebrating — while thumbing its nose at tradition.

        World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus practices at a decked out Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Historic Wimbledon will host Olympic tennis.

        By Clive Brunskill, Getty Images

        World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus practices at a decked out Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Historic Wimbledon will host Olympic tennis.

    Enlarge

    By Clive Brunskill, Getty Images

    World No. 1 Victoria Azarenka of Belarus practices at a decked out Wimbledon All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Historic Wimbledon will host Olympic tennis.

    Beach volleyball and bikinis will appear not far from No. 10 Downing St. Hot pink will crash all-white Wimbledon. Marathoners will huff past Westminster Palace, the Tower Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral. Equestrians will pass time at Greenwich Park on the meridian from which the world's time is set. Rowers will look to make history in the shadow of Windsor Castle, the oldest and largest occupied castle in the world.

    Thanks to the city's iconic backdrop and a number of Olympic firsts, the London Games are poised to be unlike any other, providing fans across the world with real-time images and memories as indelible as the Games themselves.


    The beach volleyball stadium — situated at the Horse Guards Parade on the prime minister's doorstep in central London — has its own unique soundtrack.

    "We got ding-donged by Big Ben during practice," Czech beach volleyball player Petr Benes said this week. "That was fantastic."

    To celebrate the start of the Games today, Big Ben will chime more than 40 times during a three-minute span. At the same moment, thousands of bells — school bells, church bells, bicycle bells and door bells — will ring across the country as Britons recognize that their grand moment on the world stage has arrived, welcoming athletes and fans from more than 200 countries.

    Queen Elizabeth will ring in these Games at today's opening ceremony, with a royal entourage that will include Prince Charles and Camilla, Prince William and Kate and Prince Harry. After the sterility of the 2008 Beijing Games, London is looking to achieve a different vibe, kicking off the evening with a three-hour extravaganza featuring Paul McCartney, David Beckham and a pastoral set at Olympic Stadium with scores of farm animals intended to paint for the world a picture of a quaint British countryside.

    Dana Vollmer Sets Olympic Record In 100m Butterfly At London Games

    LONDON, England, July 28. DANA Vollmer decided to kick it up a notch in prelims of the women's 100-meter butterfly at the 2012 London Olympics.

    Vollmer, who already held the American record with a 56.42 from the 2012 U.S. Olympic Trials, a time which also stood as the textile best, put on the afterburners in prelims with a scorching time of 56.25. That swim not only bested her American and textile best time, it also wiped out the Olympic record of 56.61 set by Inge de Bruijn of The Netherlands at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.


    Vollmer's effort is the fourth fastest off all time, with her still standing as the fourth performer behind Sarah Sjostrom (56.06), Liu Zige (56.07) and Jessicah Schipper (56.23). Vollmer is in line to become the first American to win the event since Amy van Dyken claimed the title in 1996 with the closest finals swim in the Olympic event's history. Van Dyken clipped China's Liu Limin, 59.13 to 59.14, at the 1996 Atlanta Games.

    "I felt really good," Vollmer said after her race. "I like to push myself in the prelims and see where I'm going in my body. I did feel like I was kind of pacing myself and building up to get faster. Walking in I just had to remind myself that I love racing and the 100m fly is my favorite event. I feel so much better. I'm a completely different person to what I was four years ago."

    China's Lu Ying raced to second in 57.17 to move to 15th all time in the event's history. She will be attempting to win China's first gold medal in the event since Qian Hong topped the 1992 race with a 58.62.

    "I am doing good as normally in training I swim around 58ish, so this morning's swim (57.17sec) was not at my standard level," Lu said. "I feel good about it."

    Australia's Alicia Coutts (57.36), Sweden's Sjostrom (57.45) and Denmark's Jeanette Ottesen Gray (57.64) qualified third through fifth. Australia is riding a two-Games win streak in the event with Petria Thomas and Libby Trickett claiming the last two gold medals. Sjostrom, meanwhile, did enough to advance, but will be looking to better her world record of 56.06 set during the techsuit era. Denmark has never medaled in this event.

    China's Jiao Liuyang (57.71), USA's Claire Donahue (58.06) and Great Britain's Fran Halsall (58.23) rounded out the top eight.

    Great Britain's Ellen Gandy (58.25), The Netherlands' Inge Dekker (58.30), Singapore's Li Tao (58.34), Italy's Ilaria Bianchi (58.42), Belarus' Aliaksandra Herasimenia (58.50), Sweden's Martina Granstrom (58.70), Japan's Yuka Kato (58.72) and Greece's Kristel Vourna (58.73) also made the semifinal rounds.

    Michael Phelps barely makes 400 IM final vs. Ryan Lochte

    Phelps on Saturday morning qualified for the eighth and final spot in tonight's final of the 400 individual medley. That puts him in an outside lane tonight.

    "A final spot is a final spot," Phelps said. "The only thing that matters is getting a spot in. You can't win a gold medal from the morning."

    No, but you can lose one if you don't qualify, and Phelps very nearly didn't. He won his heat in 4 minutes, 13.33 seconds, barely beating Hungary's Laszlo Cseh, who finished in 4:13.40. Cseh will miss the final after winning silver in 2008 and bronze in 2004.

    Lochte qualified in third place overall.

    "My first race is always the worst one," Lochte said. "I'm glad I got the cobwebs out."

    And what of his rival and village suitemate qualifying last?

    "You can't count him out," Lochte said.

    "Even though he just squeaked in eighth, he's a racer. We're going to do everything we can to go 1-2 tonight."

    Count Japan's Kosuke Hagino in. He finished first overall in 4:10.01, a national record. The hotly anticipated Splash of the Titans between Phelps and Lochte could end up as Hagino's party, which would make him the first Japanese swimmer to win the Olympic 400 IM.

    Lochte (4:12.35) came second in his heat behind South Africa's Chad le Clos, who qualified second in 4:12.24.

    Phelps hopes to be the first male swimmer to win the same individual event at three consecutive Olympics. Lochte, who won bronze in the 400 IM in 2008, beat Phelps in the event at the Olympic trials and won the world championship in the medley distance in 2009 and 2011.

    Tonight's other qualifiers are Thiago Pereira of Brazil, Thomas Fraser-Holmes of Australia, Luca Marin of Italy and Yuya Horihata of Japan. None was expected to be ranked above the

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