PAULA NEAL MOONEY

by Paula Neal Mooney MC Hammer dead ? Did MC Hammer / Stanley Kirk Burrell really die ? Folks are wondering about new MC Hammer death rumors that just hit the net. Here's the supposed report being circulated about how MC Hammer allegedly died : "MC Hammer dead .......RIP MC Hammer (Kirk Burrell), Pop Rap icon of the 90's , passed away today in a Baltimore hospital room outside a Tribe Called Quest show in New Jersey last night, the singer was struck by a car passing by the front of the Ventura Theatre. Brunswick police say that the driver allegedly stopped, but then fled the scene. There is now a police investigation underway. Hammer was rushed to St. Agnes Hospital in Baltimore, where he was pronounced dead this morning at 6am. This is a tragedy for the underground music as a whole." But let's look at the evidence that suggests the MC Hammer (nee Stanley Kirk Burrell) died rumors are just that, rumors: Google News has no reports of MC Hammer's alleged death...

by Paula Neal Mooney The Rev Run on Oprah Video: Watch it and cry, then praise the Lord God...

by Paula Neal Mooney Those Wikipedia editors got the net in a tizzy this week when some wise guy reported that comedian Sinbad had died. As you can see from the below screenshot of Sinbad's current Wikipedia page , it has been locked down to prevent pranksters from spreading more death rumors about the funny "son of a preacher man." But I've spent a good deal of time this morning looking for Sinbad's original Wikipedia page screenshot that falsely reported his death in the first place. I'm sure some intrepid 12-year-old grabbed a screenshot of Sinbad's Wikipedia death page , just for giggles. Does anyone have it? Wikipedia is a great resource, but I always take it with a grain of salt and perform a lot of back-up research on what is reported therein because of stunts like this. Remember when the Wikipedians created a whole detailed page about Halle Berry's impending music CD that turned out to be a hoax ? Birthdays are sometimes wrong on Wikipedia. A...

by Paula Neal Mooney "Anna Nicole Smith Dead ," read the headline that just made me gasp. I poked around several news stories to confirm that Anna Nicole Smith has died at the young age of 39. Now I can't help but wonder what was the cause of death of Anna Nicole, the "blonde bombshell" whom no doubt will forever draw endless comparisons to another tragically famous blonde who lived her life "like a candle in the wind" -- Marilyn Monroe. Edwina Johnson, Broward County Medical Examiner's Office chief investigator, has said that Anna Nicole's cause of death is under investigation and that an autopsy will be performed tomorrow. I'll bet almost anything that Anna Nicole's autopsy report will reflect drugs in Anna Nicole's system as the cause of death. I've been watching Anna Nicole on ET lately and she seemed dead already -- under the influence of some kind of potent painkillers. So sad. But I'll always remember Anna Nicole...

by Paula Neal Mooney M onday morning. I had just begun to shift from weekend to work mode when my parents’ home number appeared in the Caller-ID display box on the black phone in my cube. "Hello?" I answered, cheerful yet quiet. "Where’s the body?" Mommy asked someone in the background. Ah…my quirky mother, Thelma O’Neal Dobbins. Only she would unwittingly start a conversation that way. Obviously her own mother – my beloved "Gran Ruby" – had ended her battle with diabetes and old age. I figured Mommy was calling to give me the news. "Hel-lo-o?" I sang, ready to offer my mother the same solace I did six years before, when her father died. Lived a long life…Not suffering anymore… I was totally prepared. "Yeah, Paula? Your Mommy died last night." For those words, I was totally unprepared. "What?" "Your Mommy died." Suddenly I heard the difference in their voices. I was talking to my mother’s sister, not my mother. And s...