Latest news with #fame
Daily Mail
12 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Butterbean opens up on his crippling sex addiction and battle with obesity after retiring
Butterbean, the cult-hero boxer whose real name is Eric Esch, has come forward to reveal his past battles with sex addiction. Speaking to the Mirror, the 58-year-old admitted his own weight problems, past rejections and sudden fame fueled his addiction in the 1990s and 2000s. Butterbean has now conquered this demon and he remains married despite his infidelities but now admits 'it was pretty bad.' 'I've been married for a long time and I've always loved my wife, but that was something that I've always had trouble getting over,' he told the Mirror. 'Now, I'm good. I'm confident in myself now. I don't have that problem. I'm a good boy now.' Butterbean and wife Libby Esch have three children, including a pair of sons who have forayed into mixed martial arts, although both were well shy of the 400-or-so pounds the elder Esch fought at in his boxing days. Teased for his weight as a child, Butterbean channeled that frustration into Toughman contests – truncated boxing matches that often relied on larger 16-ounce gloves and other safety measures. The events had a fringe, amateurish feel for much of the 1990s. But, as Butterbean continued winning, the rotund former former construction worker out of Texarkana soon turned pro, ultimately earning the nickname of 'King of the Four-Rounders.' In fact, promoter Bob Arm later convinced IBA commissioner Dean Chance to give Butterbean a belt as champion of the non-existent 'super heavyweight division.' Butterbean never actually defeated a ranked opponent, although he did lose to 53-year-old former heavyweight champion Larry Holmes in 2002. Although he continued to be a media presence, including stints in various wrestling circuits, Butterbean's weight increasingly became a problem. 'When you can't walk and you can't walk into the store and get something to drink, you do get depressed,' said Butterbean, who admittedly needed a wheelchair at one point as he surpassed 500 pounds. Eric 'Butterbean' Esch during an interview with host Jay Leno on May 10, 1996 'I was in bed for almost a year… got out of bed just to go to the bathroom. And I ate in the bed. I mean, I didn't even leave the bed.' These days, Butterbean is down more than 200 pounds – something he credits to his friend, wrestling legend 'Diamond' Dallas Page, who introduced him to yoga and a number of other healthy habits. 'I went and moved to DDP for a while, did his yoga program, and I'm in the best shape of my life right now,' Butterbean said. 'I feel better now at 50-something than I did when I was in my 20s, which is insane. I can't explain it, but the Fountain of Youth, I dove in it and I come out so much better.' Butterbean is retired, but he'd consider one comeback fight: Jake Paul. "Butterbean's back for one more fight,' he said in a social media clip. 'There's only one fighter out there that wants to fight retired, bald guys. I'm coming for you. I want to fight Jake Paul because he runs his damn mouth too much.' Paul previously fought and defeated a 58-year-old Mike Tyson.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Christie Brinkley Went to Paris to Heal From a Breakup — & Accidentally Became a Supermodel
Christie Brinkley didn't move to Paris to chase fame. She moved there to cry over a cheating ex. At 18, fresh off a breakup and done with L.A. heartbreak, she packed up and enrolled in a French art school, hoping that a change of scenery — and maybe a baguette or two — would help her forget. 'I have always wanted to try to do as many things as possible,' she told The Sydney Morning Herald in a lengthy new profile. And back then, that meant starting over somewhere beautiful. More from SheKnows Why Christie Brinkley Refuses To Change Her Dating Standards at 71 While she was in Paris, things started to look up. She fell in love with Jean-François Allaux, a French artist who would become her first husband. But then he got drafted into the military, and Brinkley — newly heartbroken for the second time — adopted a puppy named Bianca to keep her company. Bianca, it turns out, would be the one to change everything. In the spring of 1974, the puppy got sick. Brinkley left her apartment to call a vet and, while looking down at Bianca curled up in her bag, accidentally walked into a man in a faded green US Army jacket. He had a camera around his neck. 'If you're not a model, you should be,' he told her. 'You could earn a lot of money.' When he asked her name, she said, 'Christie Brinkley.' That chance run-in kicked off what Brinkley later called a 'succession of go-sees, shoots, commercials and covers.' Within months, she was on 11 magazine covers 'all published about the same time,' including Mademoiselle, Cosmopolitan, Redbook, Vogue France, and Harper's Bazaar. She would go on to become the first person to land three consecutive Sports Illustrated swimsuit covers and lock down a 25-year contract with CoverGirl — one of the longest modeling deals in history. So yes: a cheating boyfriend. A sad Paris chapter. A sick dog. And then — superstardom. The identity of the boyfriend who started it all? Still a mystery. Brinkley has never named him, and the Herald doesn't drop any clues. But we owe that man a thank you (and maybe a mild curse), because his bad decisions launched a modeling career that reshaped beauty standards for decades. Now 71, Brinkley runs her own wine label, Bellissima, and fashion line, TWRHLL. She's weathered divorce, trauma, public scrutiny — and still keeps showing up with a sense of humor and a mission. 'I have always wanted to try to do as many things as possible. Have all these different experiences and fill up my life with adventures,' she told the Herald. Safe to say: she understood the of SheKnows Everything We Know About Carolyn Bessette's Life Before JFK JR 29 Times Gisele Bündchen's Red Carpet Fashion Proved She's the Ultimate Supermodel 68 Celebrities Who Share a Famous Ex Solve the daily Crossword
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
What happened to X Factor bad boy Frankie Cocozza? Where the lothario is now after a CBB stint, famous flings and £200K booze blowout
At just 18 he became the X Factor 's bad boy with his foul mouth, unbrushed hair and names of seven sexual partners tattooed on his bottom, which he proudly showed off to millions of viewers during his audition. In 2011, Frankie Cocozza made an instant impact on the ITV talent competition and under the mentorship of Gary Barlow reached the live shows, before being axed for 'boasting about cocaine-fuelled sex sessions'. Still in his teens the singer issued an apologetic statement admitting his life had 'gone out of control', while Take That's Gary said he was 'hugely disappointed' that Frankie 'threw away an opportunity'. Despite leaving the show in disgrace, Frankie cashed in on his fame with several reality TV stints and headline grabbing antics. Yet he then fell out of the public eye and ended up working for £7.50 an hour on a building site job after years of hard partying and blowing £200,000 on booze. Nowadays, Frankie lives a quiet life in Australia - and MailOnline has documented the star's journey from reality show fodder to life Down Under. Frankie was said to have been kicked off The X Factor after boasted about drug use in front of production staff. He later confessed: 'I'm a drug addict. Simple as that. I just am. I love cocaine. I'm sorry, I do.' The singer provoked controversy throughout his time on the show and during an appearance on spin-off the Xtra Factor crudely claimed he had 'banged' Geordie Shore star Holly Hagan after the pair were snapped kissing. He told hosts Olly Murs and the late Caroline Flack: 'I met her... I banged her', before putting his hand to his mouth and saying: 'Sorry, I shouldn't have said that'. Holly was left mortified by the remark and told Daily Star years later: 'Frankie was so famous at that moment in time, the bad boy of X Factor, the talking point of the nation and that night, my date'. 'We all know what happened, yes, we had sex and we were pictured snogging outside of this apartment, the pictures ended up on the front cover of the Daily Star newspaper. 'Yet I wasn't prepared for what would happen that night, when Frankie was being interviewed live for The Xtra Factor.' However a decade later in 2022, Frankie claimed that he was paid by the reality star and her management whopping £1,100 to stage the smooch. During an appearance on The James Smith Podcast he said: 'Anyway, this lovely girl, and she is lovely, she's a sweetheart and she goes, "Oh Frank, I've just been talking to my manager and, basically, he's willing to give you £1500 in cash if we can have a photo outside getting off with each other"'. 'Are you winding me up? This is after week one on the X Factor. I haven't earned a penny, right? £1500 was like, f***ing hell, mind blowing'. He continued: 'Go outside, this little ratty geezer turns up in this s****y little motor, he goes, "Here you go, I've only got £1100. I'll give you £400 in a cheque"' Only to claim the cheque later bounced. MailOnline have contacted Holly's reps for comment. Following his 2011 X Factor exit Frankie said in a statement: 'I'd like to apologise to Gary, my fellow contestants and everyone who has voted for me, but, as of today, I will no longer be in the X Factor. 'My life during the show has gone out of control and my behaviour off stage has over-stepped the rules of the competition. I no longer deserve my place in the show, so I am therefore leaving. I would like to thank everyone who has supported me.' He was also forced to issue a hasty clarification about his tattoo and said the women simply visited the bar where he worked while they were on holiday in Crete, after they denied sleeping with him. The women revealed that they agreed to have their names inked on his bottom as part of a drunken dare. The names belonged to two groups of Scottish students. And following his claims on the X Factor many of them were forced to call family and boyfriends to reassure them that they had not had sex with the contestant. Natasha Hendry, Emma Dodds, Cara Dolan and Roxanne Fowler from West Calder, near Edinburgh, were inked on one cheek and Rachel Cathro, Jenna Robb and Ailsa Kane, from Dundee, on the other. Roxanne told MailOnline at the time: 'We never would have done it if we thought he was going to show the whole world. It's horrible to think people would believe any of us – or even all four – slept with him.' He went on to have limited success as a solo artist before forming short-lived pop rock band The Telescreen. The band have not be active since 2015 and Frankie has not released music in years, despite fans' pleas, but still describes himself as a 'musician'. Riding high on his new found fame, Frankie then landed a reported £30,000 payday in 2011 to appear in Celebrity Big Brother, and finished in a respectable second place behind Denise Welch. He then appeared on Celebs Go Dating in 2017 alongside Charlotte Dawson and the couple dated only for the relationship to quickly fizzle out soon after filming ended. The daughter of the late Les Dawson slammed the singer following their split, claiming she was 'used' to get more airtime. He then appeared on Celebs Go Dating in 2017 alongside Charlotte Dawson (pictured together) and the couple dated only for the relationship to quickly fizzle out soon after filming ended She told Star magazine: 'I don't speak to him. We had a good connection - as you could see on Celebs Go Dating, it was very genuine and real.' Yet revealing she feared he used her to play up for the cameras, Charlotte added: 'I didn't have him down for being a showman type of person, so it was a shock. It was horrible.' Despite adding that Frankie was 'an idiot' and 'stupid', Charlotte admitted that she still had a soft spot for the X Factor star. 'If I saw him tomorrow, we'd probably end up sleeping together,' she admitted, 'then I'd probably tell him to f**k off!' Frankie admitted he was determined to get back to work after being left in the showbiz wilderness and needing funds to support himself. He told The Mirror in 2017: 'I love being on the building site. I get so much grief, but its a crease up. I knock up pug (mortar mix) for the plasterers. It's fun. It gives me a reason to get up in the morning'. The star also made the startling revelation that he spent a mammoth £200,000 on booze, but after a feckless spending spree, was left with just £5 in the bank. He said: 'I didn't think it was going to end. I spent it all on Fred Perry and booze – among other things I won't say'. But the singer revealed he had gone through incredibly dark times, including the deaths of his beloved aunt Helen Cope from cancer and best friend Connor Saunders, 19, who was killed in an unprovoked attack. He said he blotted out his grief with alcohol and sank into depression, saying ' I covered it up by getting off my nut, which inevitably makes it worse'. He has now made a new life for himself in Australia and looks worlds away from his X Factor days with a clean cut style in snaps shared to his Instagram. Frankie is now dating lingerie model Emma Stubbs. He shared regular updates to his social media while living his best life down under and despite not releasing new music in almost a decade, his profile lists him as a musician. Prior to this, he was married to Bianca Murphy - with whom he shares six-year-old son Frankie Jr. Frankie and ex Bianca, who separated in 2022 after four years together, met shortly after Frankie moved down under. They tied the knot in May 2018 back in Brighton and the following year welcomed their son. The Sun reported that Frankie and Bianca remain on amicable terms for the sake of their Frankie Jr, with a source saying: 'Frankie and Bianca were madly in love but things just fizzled out over time. 'They have remained on good terms for the sake of their son, Frankie Jr, but have both moved on.'
Vogue
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Vogue
Avalon Is the Cult LA Musician Crafting Indie-Pop Bangers—and Building Her Own ‘High-Femme Fantasy' World
The end result? Six slick, stylish, and deliciously moody tracks that explore the shadowy corners of desire, fame, and sexuality. There's the wildly catchy opener 'Harder to Reach Than God,' on which she delivers a winking come-on to a lover, and the eerie, noirish 'Scream,' on which she sweetly sings about having a 'superstar' locked in the trunk of her car. A particular highlight is the scuzzy, electric guitar-led 'Forever,' with its lyrics charting a dangerous romance—mysterious snippets of which feel like they're being glimpsed through the shimmer of a hot, hazy day in Los Angeles—over swirling synths and a hyperactive, distorted beat. ('If you fucked me forever / in your denim and leather,' she sings, with a gentle growl. 'If you fucked me forever / don't you think I'd feel better?') The EP has quiet echoes of other artists who have both romanticized and subverted the clichés of California life—Courtney Love and Lana Del Rey both spring to mind—but Avalon's melting pot of sonic influences is altogether her own, with traces of grunge, '00s indie, and synth-pop all whizzed up into a silky, seductive package. Like most artists of her generation, however, Avalon doesn't worry about genre all that much. 'When I think about genre, I don't necessarily think of a sound, but more about the subcultures they sprang from,' she says. 'I think we're now living in a sort of post-subculture world because of the internet, and a lot of artists aren't really conforming to genre. I suppose I was really inspired by some of my contemporaries that just make music from the heart, as corny or trite as that might sound. I think that's the most important thing. I don't think about genre so much as I think about honesty.' Photo: Gaylord Studios Photo: Gaylord Studios This fluid approach to making music can be chalked up, at least in part, to Avalon's upbringing. She notes that her parents had her when they were 18 and 20, and when she was growing up in Santa Ana, they'd often take her to gigs, where she absorbed an eclectic range of sounds—new wave, post-punk, electroclash. By the time she was a teenager, she was already performing in punk bands. (She even co-founded the very first Death Grips fan club with her friend Jarrod.) Before long though, she wanted to strike out on her own. 'I'm a control freak,' she says with a laugh. 'I always knew that I needed to have full autonomy over the work and every aspect of the music I was making.' As a first-generation Chicana, equally central to her artistic identity is her Mexican heritage. 'I think the Chicano community is one of the driving forces of alternative and post-punk and goth music,' she says. 'A lot of those artists have been held up by Chicanos: Morrissey and the Smiths, the Cure, Depeche Mode. These are all bands that my uncles listen to. Even though they're from England, for some reason, their music just resonated with us—I think because it's so dramatic, it reminds us of Vicente [Fernández] or Luis Miguel. It's so passionate and romantic. I suppose that's how I feel about life too.'
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
14-Year-Old Miley Cyrus Was Asked About Pregnancy Rumors And 'Sex Before Marriage' In A 'Gross' Resurfaced Clip, And People Are So Disturbed
Miley Cyrus was barely a teenager when she shot to worldwide fame — and sadly, the spotlight came with heaps of negative public attention. Related: Miley repeatedly found herself at the center of wild and inappropriate rumors, including claims that she was pregnant at age 14. At a 2007 event, Miley actually ended up addressing this rumor during red carpet chats with Inside Edition and Extra TV. 'I am not pregnant. I am 14 years old, and that is very lame because I'm a minor,' she said in one of the interviews, which recently resurfaced online. 'So stupid,' Miley said of the false claim, while her mom, Tish Cyrus, stood behind her smiling and shaking her head. Related: 'The main reason that I'm here tonight is to set the record straight,' Miley went on. 'I think people that make stuff up like that and do that's kind of a cry for help, for attention.' An Extra TV reporter later asked Miley, 'Why do you think these rumors about you being pregnant still exist? Why do you think they're still going around?' To this, the teenager replied, 'I don't know, I'm ready for them to make up something else so I can escape from it.' 'I think it's just people kind of wanting attention, but they didn't get the attention they wanted. It got turned back on me, and it was attention that I did not want at all,' she said, before sarcastically adding, 'Thanks a lot guys, good job.' Related: Miley admitted that she was initially heartbroken over the false rumor because she thought she'd be judged. However, she noted that her fans stood by her regardless and knew better than to believe the claim. 'It's given me the street cred to say that would be impossible, because I'm living my life the way I believe is right and that is to stay pure,' she said. The reporter then asked, 'So you really believe in no sex before marriage?' Miley replied, 'No, I don't at all. So, I'm trying to stay true to that, 'cause you never know, you know.' Reacting to the resurfaced interview clip now, several internet users called out the 'disturbing' way Miley was treated. 'The fact that a 14-year-old had to handle that level of adult weirdness is honestly disturbing,' one Reddit user wrote, while someone else said on Instagram, 'Why are they asking a 14 year old whether she believes in no sex before marriage! That's fucked.' Related: 'Why are they asking her that?' another user echoed. 'These adult interviewers are so gross and weird,' someone said. Meanwhile, some users commented on Tish's demeanor throughout her daughter's interview. 'And her mom just watched,' one user wrote, while someone else questioned, 'Why is her mother just standing there smiling?! If someone asked my fourteen year old about pregnancy…oh boy.' Let me know what you think in the comments. More on this Miley Cyrus Revealed That Her Mom Was Behind Her Controversial 2009 Teen Choice Awards Performance — And Called Her Out For Being 'Nowhere To Be Found' When The Backlash StartedStephanie Soteriou · Dec. 2, 2024 'I Thought It Was All Real': People Are Shocked After Discovering That Miley Cyrus's Famous Long Locks Were Actually Hundreds Of Individual Hair ExtensionsLeyla Mohammed · Nov. 29, 2024 15-Year-Old Miley Cyrus Once Fiercely Defended Her Rumored Relationship With A 20 Year Old, And Ryan Seacrest's Resurfaced Response Is Being ApplaudedLeyla Mohammed · June 26, 2025 Justin Bieber Was Asked About Sex At 15 And 'Violated' By An Adult Woman Onstage And It's Sparked A Conversation About The Way He Was Treated As A Child StarStephanie Soteriou · March 6, 2023 Also in Celebrity: Also in Celebrity: Also in Celebrity:
