Apolo Ohno Scores Million Dollar Pad for Soul Patch
Apolo Ohno dropped $990K on a sick LA condo recently -- a ridiculously low price, considering it's a fraction of what the pad went for in the past ...TMZ has learned.
The Olympic speed skater snapped up the 2,500 sq. ft. spot a little earlier this year, and can thank the housing crisis for the MASSIVE discount he got -- the place previously sold for $1.5 million in 2006 and again for $1.55 million in 2008.
Between 2 bedrooms and 4 baths, Ohno has plenty of wall space to show off his medals -- 2 gold, 2 silver and 4 bronze -- plus, the pad's got a pool and it's only blocks from Beverly Hills ... prime locations to show off his lower-lip fur.
FYI -- Apolo raked in almost $300k from Dancing with the Stars this year too.
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MLB Legend Carlton Fisk Pleads GUILTY to Corny DUI
MLB Hall of Fame catcher Carlton Fisk stepped up to the plate today ... pleading "guilty" to DUI after his arrest in an Illinois corn field back in October.
TMZ broke the story ... cops found Fisk passed out in the driver's seat of his F-150, which Fisk had plowed onto a New Lenox farm. Cops claim they also found an open bottle of vodka in the vehicle.
Fisk -- a first time offender -- pled guilty to misdemeanor DUI. He was sentenced to one year of court supervision and was ordered to pay $1,250 in fines.
Fisk's attorney believed they could have won the case, but said the MLB legend wanted to accept responsibility for what he did.
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Blake Griffin Rollin' in $140K Benz ... But WHERE's the Kia?
Blake Griffin escorted a hot blonde to his awesome ride -- totally fit for the superstar of the NBA's best team -- only issue is the car they got into ... is NOT made by the company paying Blake a fat endorsement deal.
The Los Angeles Clippers' human dunk machine slipped into a Mercedes-Benz S63 AMG -- a pimp sled for sure, which retails for about $140,000.
However, anyone who's watched an NBA game this season has seen Blake's hysterical Kia Optima commercials where he travels back in time to tell his young self how awesome the Optima is.
Still, Kia is paying him to pump up their product. Think about it ... ever seen Michael Jordan in an Adidas track suit?
So, we gotta ask ...
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Dallas Cowboys Star INDICTED After Deadly Crash Killed Teammate
Dallas Cowboys nose tackle Josh Brent has been indicted on one count of intoxicated manslaughter ... after allegedly killing his teammate in a drunken car accident earlier this month.
Brent was indicted by a Texas Grand Jury today following the December 8th crash that killed his friend and teammate Jerry Brown. Brent was behind the wheel at the time of the accident.
Police in the Dallas suburb where the accident took place claim Brent was speeding when his Mercedes struck a curb and flipped over. Officers believe Brent was under the influence of alcohol.
Brent is currently out on $100,000 bail and, if convicted, faces up to 20 years in prison.
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Chad Johnson Contacts FBI Over Leaked Sex Tape
Chad Johnson is turning to the FBI for help ... after a sex tape featuring the former NFL star leaked onto the Internet, TMZ has learned.
The footage shows Chad in a Florida hotel room ... doing the dirty with a tatted-up female.
Sources close to Chad tell TMZ, he's furious ... and believes the video was hacked from his phone -- much like Scarlett Johansson's nude photos. So, like Scarlett, he's contacted the FBI to help hunt down the culprit.
TMZ broke the story ... Chad admits the tape is real but insists he's not the one who leaked it. He says it was shot more than 3 years ago.
We're told Chad's still waiting for a response from the Bureau -- but he's not sitting around ... he's contacted his lawyer (who deals specifically with cyber crimes) to put together a cease-and-desist letter to get the footage yanked from the web.
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Rihanna & Chris Brown TOGETHER at the Lakers Game
For the first time in YEARS, Chris Brown and Rihanna arrived at a public event TOGETHER -- sitting side-by-side at the Lakers vs. Knicks game at Staples Center.
The two arrived to the arena in the same car earlier today, but got out of the vehicle separately. They eventually met up inside and sat down together in their courtside seats.
Chris and Rihanna haven't officially announced they're back on -- but it sure as hell seems like it ... especially with Chris dumping his old GF Karrueche Tran over his undying "love" for RiRi.
Of course, Rihanna dumped Chris back in 2009 after he beat the crap out of her. Brown eventually pled guilty to assault and is still on probation stemming from that incident.
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Ex MLB Star Andruw Jones Christmas Day Bust for Domestic Violence
Former New York Yankees slugger Andruw Jones' Christmas Day started out behind bars -- police in Georgia arrested him for an alleged domestic violence incident involving his wife ... following their Christmas Eve party.
According to the incident report, obtained by TMZ, Andruw's wife called police at 1:30 yesterday morning, claiming Andruw drunkenly attacked her in their Duluth, GA home following the holiday get together, dragging her through their garage and choking her.
Andruw's wife told police she had asked him to help her set up for Christmas morning after the party -- including assembling a computer desk -- and Andruw grew belligerent ... grabbing her and attacking her.
According to the report, when police arrived at the couple's home, they found the baseball player passed out in bed, still dressed in his clothes from earlier in the day. Officers then woke Andruw up and placed him under arrest.
According to Gwinnett County jail records ... Jones was booked for battery and released on a $2,500 bond.
35-year-old Jones starred with the Braves, Dodgers, White Sox, Rangers ... and last season with the Yankees. He just signed a deal to play in Japan next year.
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Dirk Nowitzki EPIC SHOWDOWN at Children's Hospital
Will Kolassa.
That name is going to haunt Dirk Nowitzki for years ... 'cause he DOMINATED the NBA superstar when a game of 1-on-1 broke out at a Children's Hospital in Dallas.
It all went down at Children's Medical Center in Dallas last week, where Dirk was handing out gifts to some of the kids.
And that's when it happened ... Dirk (7-footish) challenged Will (4-footish) to some mini-basketball ... and IT WAS ON!!!
Will set the pace early ... dropping a rainbow right over Dirk's head.
Sure, Dirk somehow managed to pull off a dunk ... and he chalked up a pretty nasty rejection ... but in the end, it was all Will.
The kid started off the day as a hardcore Bulls fan ... but now says he'll also root for Dirk.
We're guessing a lot of people are gonna feel that way after watching the clip.
H/T to SportsGrid.
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Chad Johnson The Sex Tape is Real ... But I Didn't Leak it
Chad Johnson acknowledges ... a sex tape which appears to feature the former NFL star -- along with TWO female friends -- is REAL ... but Chad insists he never wanted the footage to go public.
Sources close to Johnson ... ha, Johnson ... tell TMZ the tape was shot roughly 3 years ago in a hotel room in Florida.
We're told Chad has no idea how the tape leaked to the Internet ... but insists he wasn't behind it ... and now he's exploring his legal options in hopes of having the tape removed from the web ASAP.
So far, it doesn't appear the entire video has made it's way into cyberspace -- only bits and pieces -- but we're told the entire tape is "substantial in length" ... ha, substantial in length.
We reached out to Johnson's lawyer -- but he had no comment.
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Lane Kiffin USC Gave Me $500k for My House, But There's a Catch
What USC giveth ... it can taketh away ... and in the process it could maketh its head football coach homeless.
Coach Lane Kiffin is reportedly raking in more than $2 mil a year. TMZ has learned ... USC wanted Lane so badly, the school gave him a $500,000 loan toward the purchase of an insane $5.5 million mansion in Manhattan Beach.
Now here's the rub: Under the terms of the loan, if Lane gets fired or quits, USC can demand the $500k back, STAT. And Lane has to pay interest to boot.
USC sucked this year and the buzz is that Lane's gettin' a pink slip soon. So the question -- even though Lane makes a pretty penny, can he ante up a huge chunk of change to stay in his house if he gets the chop at USC?
Lane certainly has a lot to lose because the house is sick -- 7,300 square feet, 6 bedrooms, 7 baths and a saltwater pool with a spa. It's the perfect place to reflect on how the hell he let UCLA dominate his team and injure his star quarterback this past season.
We reached out to USC, but so far no comment.
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Joey Porter Is a Degenerate Gambler ... Officials Say [Update]
3:34 PM PT -- Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... since the arrest, Joey has paid back the debt to the Hard Rock, so the case will be dismissed.
A rep for Porter tells us, "It was a misunderstanding as Joey wasn't aware that the debt was outstanding. It has been paid. Issue resolved."
Former NFL superstar Joey Porter is a deadbeat ... who owes the Hard Rock Casino $70,000 in unpaid gambling debts ... this according to the State of Nevada.
TMZ obtained court documents filed by the State of Nevada ... which show Porter is accused of writing 8 checks to the Hard Rock casino between June 30, 2012 and July 1, 2012 .... in exchange for cash and/or gambling chips.
Problem is .... according to the complaint, when the casino tried to cash the checks ... Joey's bank refused the transaction, claiming Joey had put a "stop payment" on them.
The Hard Rock went to cops ... and eventually Porter was charged with check-bouncing with intent to defraud and theft -- both felonies.
The docs list all of the the checks Joey allegedly wrote during his time in the casino ... and the progression indicates he was having a terrible run at the tables ... capped off with one last desperate $20k attempt to get out of the red.
Check #1 -- $10,000
Check #2 -- $10,000
Check #3 -- $5,000
Check #4 -- $5,000
Check #5 -- $5,000
Check #6 -- $5,000
Check #7 -- $10,000
Check #8 -- $20,000
As we previously reported, a warrant was issued for Joey's arrest -- and on Friday he was taken into custody during a routine traffic stop in Bakersfield, CA. Porter is currently behind bars.
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Regis Philbin Michael Strahan's The Black Me
Michael Strahan is doing a helluva job as the new Regis Philbin ... this according to the old Regis Philbin.
The TV legend was leaving Madeo in West Hollywood last night when we asked what he thought of the 6'5", 275 pound NFL stud who took over his spot next to Kelly Ripa back in September.
"I like him," Regis said ... "I think they're pretty good [together]."
Philbin ain't the only one who feels that way -- ratings for "Live with Kelly and Michael" have been booming ever since MS joined the show.
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Ex-NFL Star Joey Porter ARRESTED for Bouncing Check
Joey Porter -- a former NFL defensive superstar -- was arrested last week after Las Vegas officials say he wrote a rubber check ... as in, it bounced.
The 35-year-old former Super Bowl champ is currently behind bars in Kern County, CA ... where he was arrested in a warrant out of Clark County, Nevada for writing a check without having sufficient funds.
According to the Bakersfield PD, Porter was initially pulled over for a routine traffic violation Friday night when the officer noticed the warrant and arrested him.
The details surrounding the alleged bad check situation are unclear.
Still, the allegation is shocking -- considering Porter made MILLIONS during his steller 13-year NFL career with the Steelers, Dolphins and Cardinals. In fact, he signed a $32 million deal in 2007 ... and a $24.5 million deal in 2010.
As TMZ previously reported, Porter was in Vegas last year ... where he was seen gambling with $30,000 in chips at a high stakes craps table.
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Hines Ward Yes, I Am the Father
Former NFL star Hines Ward doesn't need Maury Povich to tell him he's a father -- he already knows it and he's filed court papers to make it official ... TMZ has learned.
As TMZ first reported, a woman named Melanie Smith filed a complaint in Georgia to establish Ward as the father of her daughter Jordyn, born in January 2011.
But it was all just a formality. In his response, Ward says he submitted to a blood test shortly after the girl was born and the kid turned out to be his. Ward says Smith is entitled to receive child support from him, but says he's provided "substantial" support so far, despite there being no court order in place.
Ward says he and Smith are trying to hammer out an official agreement on support, custody (he wants joint legal and physical) and parenting time outside of the court. Ward says he has been able to spend a lot of time with his daughter so far and would like it to remain that way.
Sorry Maury, maybe next time.
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Harvey Levin Picks NFL Winner 'The Ryan Regan Jinx'
With his season on shambles, Harvey Levin (5-8) is gunning for a moral victory in our Week 16 match up -- Redskins vs. Eagles.
Heeeeeeere we go!
Harvey Levin: I'm worried about the Eagles ... part of it is that they've got the Ryan Regan jinx.
SIDENOTE -- Ryan Regan is a TMZ producer. He's also the TMZ Fantasy Football commish ... and a die-hard Eagles fan.
Harvey Levin: It's ironic that the TMZ commish may actually know less than me when it comes to football. He's from Philadelphia, his buddies are all Philly fans ... but his instincts are just poor.
"Now, don't get me wrong ... I like Regan a lot and I think he's a snappy dresser, but when it comes to football, he's been a lot like the Eagles ... a disaster.
"It bothers me a little to pick the Redskins, just because it's such an offensive team name ... but that's what I'm doing ... and this time I'm confident."
"I think RG3 ... this is the biggest game of his season, because he's gotta show people he's back in a big way ... he doesn't wanna become the Jeremy Lin of football."
Terrell Owens Another Day, Another Loss ... in Real Estate
Desperate times call for desperate measures, especially for unemployed NFL star Terrell Owens -- who just unloaded his massive Georgia crib for waaaaaaaaaay under the asking price.
TMZ broke the story ... the wide receiver has been dropping real-estate left and right (thanks to his dwindling finances) and has already sold off condos in Dallas, Miami and Georgia.
The latest victim in his real-estate purge is a 7,694-square-foot pad outside of Atlanta, which he bought way back in 2000 (i.e. when he had a job with the San Francisco 49ers).
T.O. first listed the house in 2010 for $1.5 million, but didn't actually sell it until now ... when he was willing to let the place go for a measly $694,000 ... a.k.a LESS than half what he wanted.
It's a great deal (for the buyer) who gets 6 bedrooms, 8 baths, a home theater, basketball court, gym, rec room, decks, and a huuuuuge resort style swimming pool.
The lesson here: BUY HOMES IN GEORGIA!!!!!