By Mark Vester
Authorities in Brazil have revealed to reporters that Arturo Gatti’s wife, Amanda Rodrigues, is one of their main suspects in the investigation of Gatti’s death. Early on Saturday morning, Gatti was found dead by wife in their rented condo at the seaside resort of Porto de Galihnas in Brazil. Brazilian police officials have said that inconsistencies in her testimony have given them grounds for suspicion. The couple was on a month’s vacation in the country.
Gatti was found with marks on his neck and some damage to the back of his head, the result of a hit from an unknown object they believe. Gatti’s wife told authorities that she and her husband were involved in a very heated verbal dispute on Friday night in a Brazilian bar. She alleges that Gatti was drunk when they came home.
The story on how and where Gatti’s body was discovered in the condo continues to change. The wife claims she went to sleep and woke up at 6am to take care of their one-year-old child. She thought Gatti was sleeping called for him and when she tried to wake him around 9am, she noticed he was dead. Police authorities say that he could have been dead for up to eight hours prior to their arrival to the scene of the crime. Police found a blood stained purse strap that one detective believes may have been used to strangle the fighter.
Police are still investigating and the wife is innocent until proven guilty.
Former champion Acelino Freitas was very close friends with Gatti, and told Brazilian reporters that he “knew Gatti and his wife were having some sort of problem and were about to separate.”
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
An iconic mural featuring caricatures of more than 100 people – and several fleet-footed horses – who have shaped racing history is now on display at the Del Mar Racetrack.
The renowned racing artist Pierre “Peb” Bellocq installed the mural this week after spending nearly two years on the project.
The 30-foot-long, 6-foot-tall piece depicts legendary crooner Bing Crosby, who founded the racetrack in 1937 at the fairgrounds along with Jimmy Durante and Pat O’Brien, who are also pictured.
About half the people in the mural are living, and some will attend a dedication ceremony July 25.
The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, a private company that has a state contract to operate the annual horse races, commissioned the project to celebrate 70 years of racing. The racetrack was founded in 1937 but it closed for three years during World War II. The 70th season begins July 22.
“We went back and looked at all our history and photographs and looked through our media guides to see who made a mark at Del Mar over the years,” said Joe Harper, president and general manager of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club since 1978.
“We have photographs of all these people scattered around, and now you can see them together,” he said.
The acrylic mural, in the Clubhouse/Turf Club entryway, features many of the glamorous Hollywood stars who frequented the track in its early days, such as Ava Gardner, Betty Grable and Barbara Stanwyck. Others are the actor Robert Taylor and comedian W.C. Fields, both racing fans.
Among the living people depicted are horse trainer Bob Baffert and horse owner Jenny Craig, known for her weight-loss centers, who is pictured next to her late husband, Sid.
Harper himself is depicted wearing sunglasses in the center of the mural above his mother, horse owner Cecilia deMille Harper.
There are also notable horses, including Seabiscuit, who won a match race with Ligaroti in 1938. Dare and Go, who in 1996 beat Cigar – then considered the best horse in the country – is pictured smoking a cigar with a satisfied look on his face.
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
He had arrived at the seaside resort of Porto de Galinhas with his wife and one-year-old son on Friday.
Gatti was known as the ‘human highlight reel’ for his blood and guts performances that earned him fans all over the world.
He held the IBF super-featherwight and WBC light-welterweight titles and was involved in a famous trilogy with ‘Irish’ Micky Ward, winning the last two contests on points.
However, despite later picking up the WBC belt his hard fights appeared to take their toll on the ‘Thunder’, who was past his best when Floyd Mayweather Jr took the title in 2005 with a sixth round stoppage.
He fought on, losing two of his next three fights before retiring in 2007 with a record of 40-9 with 31 wins by stoppage.
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
Jesse James Hollywood was convicted this afternoon of first-degree murder and kidnapping for ordering the slaying of a San Fernando Valley teenager in 2000.
The Santa Barbara County Superior Court jury was given the case July 1 after a six-week trial and nine years after the kidnapping and murder of 15-year-old Nicholas Markowitz of West Hills. Hollywood was the alleged mastermind behind the slaying.
The crime was the model for the 2007 movie “Alpha Dog.” Defense attorneys argued that the crime’s notoriety tainted the testimony of witnesses and prejudiced the public against their client.
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
NEW VIDEO: B.O.B.- “PUT ME ON (REEBOK CLASSIC REMIX 09)”
Honey: What’s going on?
Wale: Up early in the morning, Twittering. Seeing what everyone is talking about.
Tell me about your album.
It’s here. It’s done
How many tracks made the album?
14 tracks.
What story are you telling on your album?
I am actually glad that you asked that. My album is real life. It’s about relationships, the good side, the bad side. It explores relationships with women. There’s a record I have with Marsha Ambrosia, formerly of Floetry, called “Her Diary” about a woman scorned. Me, being a young single guy, you meet women, you know they want to like you but they can’t because they have been scorned. Basically it is a woman that is incapable of a first impression. She is going to see what she wants to see no matter what. If you’re too bad, then your bad. If you’re good, then your too good. Women with impossible standards, nothing that you do matters because she sees what she wants to see. Then you have songs about me being imperfect, or songs about me analyzing the world. It is a personal album from start to finish. The album is a combination of dope lyricism and reality.
Is Kanye on the album? It seems like he would be perfect for the album.
He didn’t make it. I am going to leave it at that.
No, we can’t just leave it at that.
I called, and he didn’t call me back. Want me to call him right now?
Yes.
He posted me on his blog yesterday.
That is pretty huge.
[Ed note: Wale calls and leaves a voicemail thanking Kanye for the blog post and let’s him know about a record he wants him to hear.]
I would love to see a Wale and Kanye track. I follow you on Twitter, and one of your recent tweets was “don’t you feel like all the same rappers are on the same remixes?”
Yeah, the Rap Club. I feel like they are not trying to let the new guys break through, but it is what it is. I am not waiting for anyone to do anything for me. I came in this game by myself. I am in business with the most successful rapper of all time [Jay-Z] and I don’t wait for him.
Just grinding?
Just grinding.
In September, you were on the cover of XXL with 10 other new artist: the Top 10 Freshman. Tell me about that. Who are your people from that cover?
Cudi is my mans. Currensy is my man. Ace Hood is my man. B.O.B, Mickey Factz I am cool with….
What about Charles Hamiliton? What is that situation you got going on there?
Charles is umm you know…
I don’t know. Dont’ give me the PC answer.
He is a label mate. He makes interesting music and we will leave it at that because we are at Interscope Records right now.
It’s Drake Mania. How do you feel about Drake Mania?
This is just the way of the world. He was more famous than me and Cudi. He didn’t need XXL for people to check for him. Cudi didn’t need XXL because he had a huge record out. I needed XXL. I am the man where I am from. I’ve been selling out shows for five years in [Washington,] DC, but I needed XXL to take me beyond DC. Drake already had more MySpace plays than me. He is the Zach Morris of Degrassi. Drake was a lot of people’s guilty pleasure, especially girls. He is a light-skinned dude from Canada, his own country, and he is bff with Lil Wayne. It’s going to work. When the nigga came to my show at Highline Ballroom, and no one knew who he was, I knew he was going to blow. I am not mad. His success has nothing to do with me. It doesn’t hinder me at all. I don’t want to be an actor. I don’t want be a singer. I just want to rap and connect with the people, man. I am a dark-skinned African dude. I am not a clean cut pretty boy dude. Sometimes I am scruffy. Sometimes I am a pretty. Sometimes I am fly. It just who I am. Women dig me, but I am not about to sit up here and blush, and laugh for the camera. It’s cool. Cudi, me and Drake are different things. Their success has nothing to do with me
Coming from the new class, do you feel like they are your competition?
Absolutely not.
Why?
We’re separate genres of rap music.
What genre do you fall under?
I am unboxable.
Because you play with a live go-go band?
I just want to rap, make good music. I don’t strategically plan to make music that is ‘Yo, this is for the bitches’ [or] ‘this is for the niggas’ [or] ‘this is for the college kids.’ Nah, I just want to make the music and connect with the people.
Tell me about your Cool N Dre experience.
I love working with them. I am the most inspired when I work with them. I write quickly.
What about them inspires you?
Their energy, their attitude, their work ethic and being in Miami. I need scandal, don’t I.
Scandal is good. It’s the gift and the curse. What do you want? An R&B chick, pop singer, an ex stripper? You wanna put someone in a sex tape?
You’re calling shots
Not at all.
[phone rings] That’s a scandal calling me now.
She is not big enough.
Yo, tell these R&B chicks to stop calling me.
No R&B ladies.
No I’m chilling. I am from Chocolate City, so that is what I love.
Source
Michael Porfirio Mason
AKA The Peoples Champ
AKA GFK, Jr.
AKA The Sly, Slick and the Wicked
AKA The Voodoo Child
The Guide to Getting More out of Life
http://www.thegmanifesto.com
