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A Canadian dentist who purchased an extracted molar that once belonged in the mouth of former Beatle John Lennon has revealed that he plans to have the music icon cloned by using DNA from the molar... a la Jurassic Park!
Dr. Michael Zuk purchased the decayed molar from the original owner—a former housekeeper of Lennon's—at auction in 2011, paying £19,100 ($30,000 US) for the tooth. In a press release submitted this week, Zuk claims that the DNA value of the tooth is "easily worth $2.5 million to the right company", adding "It actually is priceless if it means we can clone the Beatle." Regarding the cloning, Zuk says, "With researchers working on ways to clone mammoths, the same technology certainly could make human cloning a reality".
In 1996, scientists at the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, made headlines when they successfully managed to clone a sheep named Dolly by using the extracted DNA from another sheep. Since then, great strides have been made in cloning, but ethical and moral ramifications have kept the procedure from going main stream.
Lennon was shot and killed in 1980 by crazed fan Mark David Chapman while entering his apartment building the Dakota in New York City's Upper West Side. He was forty-years-old at the time of his death.
Billionaire divorcée Jocelyn Wildenstein (AKA "The Bride of Wildenstein" AKA The "Catwoman") has avoided having her well-heeled derriere and butchered face tossed out onto the cold streets of New York City after she apparently came to terms with her landlady, who had filed a petition to have her evicted.
It seems Wildenstein (who spent millions of dollars on cosmetic surgery to look like one of her beloved pet cats) was considerably behind in her rent at her extremely lavish apartment at the iconic 845 UN Plaza tower in Manhattan. According to her landlady Fima Shusterman, Wildenstein was more than $73,000 behind in her rent on the palatial apartment when she filed eviction papers this past December.
Jocelyn, who was once a normal-looking Swiss beauty, rose to fame when her marriage to billionaire art dealer Alec Wildenstein fell apart after she discovered her husband in bed with a 19-year-old Russian lingerie model. The enraged philandering hubby pulled a gun on Jocelyn, which ended with him going to jail and a costly divorce. Jocelyn went on to receive a record-breaking $2.5 billion divorce settlement.
The 72-year old socialite certainly should have the money to cover her rent, so hopefully she won't end up living in the streets like one of the cats she so desperately wants to resemble...
Edit: The NOAA has projected the path of the massive storm to turn inland at Delaware and going far inland, passing directly over Washington, DC, before turning north to pass over Philadelphia, New Jersey as well as New York City. Keep in mind this is still an early projection and the storm [hopefully] will alter its course:
Residents of the US East Coast are keeping their fingers crossed and hoping that Hurricane Sandy doesn't turn into the "Nightmare Before Halloween" super-storm (dubbed "Frankenstorm" due to the potential for a hybrid cyclone) that many forecast models are currently predicting.
Hurricane Sandy pounded Jamaica yesterday as a strong Category 2 storm, killing at least two people, bringing torrential rain, high winds and a dangerous storm surge to the Caribbean island nation. More than 70% of the island's population are currently without power or essential services. The storm quickly made its way to nearby Cuba, where it is currently battering the eastern part of the island.
Many of the current forecast models for the projected path of the storm have the monster skirting the Eastern Seaboard of the United States, with possible multiple landfalls anywhere from Virginia to Long Island, New York. The most current forecast models have meteorologists deeply concerned that the storm will collide with an early winter storm now forming in the West, and a strong blast of arctic air from Canada that would create a "Perfect Storm" scenario, referring to the monster Nor'Easter that did hundreds of millions of dollars in damages along the US East Coast in 1991 and was the basis of the bestselling book by Sebastian Junger and the movie of the same name starring George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg.
The "Perfect Storm" is likely to hit during a full moon when tides are near their
highest, increasing the chances of severe coastal flooding the NOAA has warned. With many trees still with leaves and the potential for snow, power outages caused by falling trees
could last through to Election Day, some meteorologists fear. Some are saying this storm has
all the earmarks of a billion-dollar nightmare for the coast.
People living along the entire Eastern Seaboard are being urged to have emergency plans in place, should the storm strengthen and become a severe threat. Evacuation orders should be taken seriously, and citizens are asked to check on elderly or sick relatives.
Some forecast models have the storm skirting the US coast before heading out to sea. Let's hope that is what happens with this storm...
It might be one of the most successful and world famous campaign slogans of all time, but New York governor Andrew Cuomo wants the Big Apple to ditch its iconic I ♥ NY motto!
Cuomo feels the slogan is "too dated" and wants to give the City a fresher, more vibrant image. The original slogan and artwork was created by artist Milton Glaser in 1977, and was immediately adopted as the symbol for the metropolis, and has retained that status for over 35 years! The slogan is featured on everything from shopping bags and umbrellas to snow globes and is instantly recognized by billions of people all around the world.
"This campaign reinvents one of our state’s great assets—the I ♥ NY icon—which is known the world over as one of the most successful advertising symbols ever," Governor Cuomo stated during a press conference, mentioning that the logo has not been used in television ads promoting tourism to the city for more than three years.
Instead of featuring the iconic ♥, the campaign is asking people to submit other ideas to represent their love for one of the world's most incredible and exciting cities. The new campaign hopes to attract tourists from within driving distance of New York as well. "Other states have been more aggressive in attracting tourism than New York," Cuomo said. "We were the best and we were the first, but somewhere along the way we lost that."
"Yes, folks, this kiss IS a sign of the approaching Apocalypse..."
Lady GaGa rang in the year 2012 by putting a big wet one on the lips of New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg. (Yet another sign the Mayan End-time calendar for this year is correct!)
GaGa rocked out on Dick Clark's Rockin' New Years' Eve by performing a medley of her top hits over the past year, including "Born This Way" and "Marry the Night". The 25-year-old superstar also was given the unique honor of being the one to release the 12,000-pound Waterford crystal ball during the countdown to the Magic Hour. Dressed appropriately in a beaded crystal gown from Versace complete with one of her trademark masks and requisite long gloves, she looked as sparkling as Times Square itself, as she elected to plant a midnight smooch on 69-year-old billionaire Bloomberg. (Instead of her hunky, rumored boyfriend Taylor Kinney?) The unlikely duo even shared a cute, midnight dance.
GaGa certainly has reason to celebrate, as she was once again the top earning artist for the past year. Forbes magazine listed the avant-garde entertainer as the top earning artist of 2011, with earnings surpassing $100 million over the past twelve months.
"I may have only played Cleopatra in a movie, but my life was just as spectacular and fiery..."
Christie's Auction House in New York City was the location for one of the most sought-after and anticipated auctions in memory... the fabulous jewelry collection of the superstar film and stage actress Elizabeth Taylor.
The beautiful Cat on a Hot Tin Roof star died earlier this year at the age of 79. Over the years, Taylor had collected a stunning array of jewelry that would even give Great Britain's Royal House of Windsor's Crown Jewels a run for its money. The eight-times married actress possessed two of the most coveted items of jewelry in the world, the Krupp diamond, an incredible 33.19 carat ring that was given to her by actor Richard Burton, as well as the La Peregrina - an early 16th century pearl, ruby and diamond necklace by Cartier, also a gift from Burton, who Taylor married, twice. The necklace was expected to bring in around $3 million, but sold for an astonishing $11 million. The Krupp diamond ring fetched a staggering $8,818,500.
A large collection of the always-fashionable Taylor's designer haute couture gowns and dresses, many worn in films or to exclusive movie premieres, was also on display. All-in-all, the auction broke all records for a private collection, bringing in a beyond-belief $150 million, with a majority of the proceeds going to a cause close to her heart, the Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation, for which the star helped millions of people around the world suffering from the disease.
Taylor's LaPeregrina pearl, ruby and diamond necklace sold for $11 million at Christie's Auction House in New York City.
