Collegiate Times

By: Rachel Cline, features staff writer

Is Amanda Bynes destined to join the growing list of unsuccessful former child stars?

Unlike many child actors, Amanda Bynes seemed to make a seamless transition from her Nickelodeon hits “All That” and “The Amanda Show” onto the big screen as a young adult, staring in hits such as “What a Girl Wants,” “Hairspray,” and “Easy A.”

However, the first few months of 2013 has brought the 27-year-old star attention in a different form as many media outlets have started questioning her behavior, some calling her “crazy” and “erratic.”

Most of this attention stems from Bynes’ new physical transformation, as well as her recent explosion of Twitter fame.

Through Twitter, Bynes has posted pictures of her new look, including blonde extensions, a partially shaved head and facial piercings on both cheeks. Bynes also used the social media site to confirm that she had undergone a nose job to remove what she referred to as webbing between her eyes.

Over the last three months, Bynes has posted countless “selfie” pictures on Twitter to show off her new style, showing her at the gym, walking in New York City, and sitting on her sink wearing nothing but hot pants and ripped fishnet tights.

Along with these images, she has also tweeted about her obsession with recording artist, Drake, and her desire to lose weight and get down to 135 pounds.

The reports of her strange behavior have increased since her return to Twitter, but this isn’t the first time that Bynes has made headlines for something other than her acting career. The former Nickelodeon star has been upfront about problems with eating disorders and body image issues.

Last April, Bynes was arrested for a DUI charge after clipping a sheriff’s car in Los Angeles and surprised many by having pink hair in her mug shot pictures.

Bynes also ran into trouble with the law last September after being charged with two counts of hit and run. Many have cited her arrests as evidence that the star is having serious problems, including accusations of alcoholism and marijuana use, although Bynes has denied both.

Bynes has announced through Twitter that she wants to sue every blog, magazine and news source that says she is behaving erratically.

In an interview with InTouch, the star said, “I have no clue [why people say I’m insane]. Every time I’ve heard it, it came from an ugly person’s mouth, so I don’t care. The only ones lying about me having a mental illness are people I don’t talk to.”

Though many are confused by the change from her girl-next-door and family-friendly image, Bynes has found a dedicated group of fans through Twitter, earning her over 1 million followers since January.

Bynes’ fans typically refer to her as their “queen” or their “princess” on the page and include collages of her Twitter pictures or artwork that they have made for her. There have also been reports of a shrine to the star popping up in New York City’s East Village that includes candles with Bynes’ face over the Virgin Mary’s.

Bynes has also received support from friends, including “Hairspray” co-star, Nikki Blonsky, who says she will stand behind her friend.

“She is just living her life and doing what she wants to do, and I totally support that for her,” Blonsky told InTouch. “She’s happy. I don’t think that’s a breakdown, but a breakthrough.”

Although most famous for her acting roles, Bynes has not been seen on film or TV since her announcement that she was retiring from acting in 2010. Instead, Bynes plans to launch her own clothing line and record an album soon.

By: Hayden Roberts, features staff writer

Most people would agree that white is the traditional color of a wedding.

Mama June stuck to her southern roots, however, and donned a custom-made camouflage dress for her much over-do exchanging of vows with her long-time boyfriend Sugar Bear.

June Shannon, commonly known as Mama June, is the mother of America’s favorite redneck pageant girl, Alana (Honey Boo-Boo) Thompson and rose to fame after being featured on “Toddlers and Tiaras.”

However, the whole Boo-Boo clan is best known for their reality-show “Here Comes Honey Boo-Boo” which runs on TLC.

The show debuted in August 2012 and centers around the family’s lifestyle living by train tracks in McIntyre, Georgia.  While the show has received a fair amount of criticism, people seem to really love this family, because they are willing to make fun of themselves.

They have even coined a popular catchphrase based on their “redneck” status.

“Y’all better redneckognize” has become the phrase that most viewers connect with the child pageant star and her family.

Based on this, Mama June knew it was time to show her true love for Mike (Sugar Bear) Thompson, Honey Boo-Boo’s father and wanted to do so in front of her daughters.

People magazine reported this news and even got some sound advice from Mama June to fans looking for their own Sugar Bear.

“Never settle for a man who doesn’t treat you right,” she told People. “If a guy doesn’t love everything about you, move on. There are plenty of other fish in the sea.”

Even though photos have surfaced of the ceremony, they have neither confirmed nor denied that they actually got married. Everyone will have to wait until the next season of the show to find out.

By: Hayden Roberts, features staff writer

Britney Spears is continuing her run of good publicity by dating the right kind of guy.

David Lucado, a 27-year-old Forest, Va. native who loves to sport Virginia Tech gear, has been seen hanging around Los Angeles with none other than the “Baby Hit Me One More Time” singer.

While Lucado did not attend Virginia Tech, he says he is a huge fan and has been photographed numerous times wearing Hokie gear around with Spears.

Just recently, Spears was seen wearing a Tech t-shirt with the number 72 on it.

Lucado is currently located in Los Angeles working for a local law firm but the real reason he moved there had been for a previous girlfriend.

The relationship did not work out and now Lucado has shacked up with Spears, mother of two boys.

Spears, who has been married previously and recently ended an engagement with her former manager, Jason Trawick, hasn’t had a problem jumping right back into the dating scene.

Spears and Lucado have only been dating a few months and have been seen going on romantic dates, going grocery shopping and even going to tanning salons together.

Many might think he is only dating her for her fame and fortune, however a source reported to E! Online that he is very serious about the relationship.

“[To David] it is a regular relationship with a regular girl,” the insider said. “He is pretty serious about it. I think they are in a really good place. It is going pretty well.”

The couple is reportedly living together and has been very public with their budding romance.

A rumor was spreading around the Tech campus that Spears would be attending a football game in the fall.  However, there has been no confirmation of this rumor.

Currently, Spears is working on an album that has Will.i.am as executive producer.

By: Jessica Groves, features reporter

Reality star, convicted felon and new mom Alexis Neiers is used to a life in the spotlight- adding a baby to the family is just Neiers’ latest feat.

Neiers was by no means the mastermind behind the real “Bling Ring,” which robbed the homes of celebrities like Orlando Bloom, Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan – Neiers is just the most notorious member of the group. Her felony charge has been glamorized in magazines, reality TV and now, a Hollywood movie.

Sofia Coppola directed a movie about the “Bling Ring” starring Emma Watson as a Neiers-like character.

While on the set of reality TV show Pretty Wild, Neiers got a first-hand look at fame in a Vanity Fair article about her court date. Unfortunately for Neiers, the article wasn’t as glamorous as the items she stole.

The Neiers family took turns screaming into the voicemail of the article’s author and expressing their disappointment that some big facts were presented wrong. In the voicemail, Neiers erupts in tears, crying that the author wrote that she was wearing the wrong pair of shoes.

Despite any trauma her felony charges might have brought, Neiers continues to move forward. She recently married and had a baby with Evan Haines, a man ten years her senior. Even the baby’s birth was a show – Neiers prepared a home birth but was rushed to the hospital after the baby, Harper, began to breach.

Neiers has no plans to see Coppola’s “Bling Ring,” and has spent her off time accusing the writers and media involved with the movie of being hypocrites obsessed with the luxuries of Hollywood. Of all people, Neiers would know.

By: Abbey Williams, features staff writer

Few people in the world would ever dream of combining yodeling and rapping, but that didn’t stop Kesha Sebert.

Better known as Ke$ha, the 26-year-old who’s famous for the song “Tik Tok,” recently broke into the world of reality television when MTV aired the first episode of “Ke$ha: My Crazy Beautiful Life.”

The 30 minute self-narrated show, which was filmed by Ke$ha’s brother, detailed some of the beginning stretches of her first headlining tour. Louis, Ke$ha’s brother, captured all the memories of the last two years from her relaxing in hometown Los Angeles to preparing for the upcoming Glastonbury Festival.

The familial support didn’t stop there. Ke$ha’s mom, Pebe, makes several appearances in the episode as well.

Ke$ha explained one of the hardest parts of touring was missing her family, but that her fans, or “second family,” made it all worthwhile.

“God, that’s better than any drug,” Ke$ha said after being greeted by hoards of screaming fans at one of her shows.

What may surprise many people who watch MTV’s newest show is that the same girl who is seen drunkenly attempting cartwheels between songs, is also a certified genius. With an IQ of over 140, Ke$ha is not exactly your typical pop sensation.

And although many hate on Ke$ha’s outrageous style and party girl image, her albums “Animal,” “Cannibal,” and 2012’s “Warrior” have all sold astonishing numbers. In fact, “Tik Tok” was at one point the best selling digital single in history.

Ke$ha sometimes takes a break from all the partying to reveal her more sentimental side on the show. In the first episode, the singer opened up about her past lover and “muse” who inspired “The Harold Song.” She also took time to hug and cry with a fan who shared that Ke$ha’s music helped him cope with severe bullying at school.

Whether you love or hate her, it’s worth checking out “Ke$ha: My Crazy Beautiful Life” on Tuesdays at 11 p.m. for all the chaos.

By: Abbey Williams, features staff writer

Ryan Lochte extended his 15 minutes of Olympic fame Sunday when his reality show “What Would Ryan Lochte Do?” aired on E!.

The 28-year-old swimmer has won 11 Olympic medals overall, however, his notoriety really began at the 2012 summer games in London where he challenged America’s favorite Michael Phelps.

Somewhat infamous for his lack of interview skills, Lochte did not do much to redeem himself in this first episode. When a cameraman asked about his London wins, he responded, “I got, like, two golds and, like, two bronze. I don’t even know. I can’t even remember what I got.”

Lochte, in fact, won two gold, two silver, and one bronze medal at the London Olympics.

Lochte has endured comedy attacks from every direction. Anchors from FOX 29 News were recently caught on camera mocking the swimmer after an interview, and few have forgotten Seth McFarlane’s SNL parody, which depicts Lochte in a less than intelligent light. Despite all the negative attention, Lochte remains unfaltering. In a recent interview on the E! Red Carpet he said, “The way I look at it, the more haters I have, it means I’m doing something right.”

Although most of the 30 minute episode consisted of Lochte obnoxiously dropping his catchphrase, “Jeah!”, he did manage to reveal a more endearing side to himself when he choked up while talking about his family and their continuing support of his swimming career.

Another impressive moment was when Lochte dedicated a serious amount of time at the gym training for the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro – all despite the previous night of hard partying. When questioned about how he managed such a feat, the swimmer looked into the camera, confused for a moment, and finally said, “If you’re a man at night, you got to be a man in the morning.”

By: Hayden Roberts, features staff writer

The “On Wednesdays, we wear pink,” gang is heading to a Broadway stage in the near future.

Everyone’s favorite catty high school girl comedy is currently in the process of being adapted into a musical by none other than the alleged drug-pushing math teacher from “Mean Girls,” Tina Fey.

Fey, along with her husband Jeff Richmond, are currently in the process of structuring the play and planning out the score.  In January, Fey said that Paramount is on board with the project as well.

“Mean Girls,” which was released in 2004, is still, to this a day one of the most quotable films by high school and college students.  In a cast lead by Lindsay Lohan as Cady, a home-schooled girl from Africa who goes to a real school for the first time after moving to the U.S., the film exposes the cliques of the high school, which eventually leads to Regina George, the rich clique leader, being killed by a bus.

Just kidding. But apparently her head did spin all the way around.

Richmond said the film seemed to gain a fan base mainly of young women and gays.  Put those two together, and you get the audience for a musical on Broadway.

While the show is still in its early stages, it has been reported that Gretchen Wieners will have her own song titled “Fetch.”  It seems like Regina George was wrong when she said it was never going to be a thing.

One actress from the original cast seems to be very determined to make her way onto the stage.  But does not want to play her original role.

Amanda Seyfried recently stated that she would love to play Regina George. This role would be a complete 180 from her role as Karen, the girl who could predict the weather with her breasts even though it was already raining.

Well, for now we just have to be patient.  Richmond and Fey have both stated it is in the early stages and could take a couple of more years before it would hit Broadway.

As long as Fey is writing and directing the musical, I know for a fact that it will be “so fetch.”

By: Katrina Spinner-Wilson, features staff writer

While the Delta Gamma’s sorority mission statement includes the line “its primary purpose is to foster high ideals of friendship,” this past month one executive board member at the University of Maryland’s Beta Sigma chapter did not exemplify this higher quality.

Instead, she sent a disturbing and extremely offensive email to her sisters. The email was filled with several expletive words and partially emphasized ones in All-CAPS.

I can’t even imagine what the girls’ reactions were just after reading the first line, “If you opened this like I told you to, tie yourself down to whatever chair you’re sitting in, because this email is going to be a rough (explicit) ride.”

This “ride” the board member decided her sisters had to endure was triggered by her opinion that none of them had participated enough in Greek Week, specifically with the fraternity Sigma Nu.

If you thought the first line was bad, it only gets worse.

“I do not give a flying (explicit), and Sigma Nu does not give a flying (explicit) about how much you love to talk to your sisters.”

How can someone dictate who you can and cannot talk to? It doesn’t make sense to me that this girl would do such a thing when she is supposed to be a sister and role model for not just the members in her sorority but for her community.

While I could provide other lines of the email, I’m too disgusted by it, especially due to the girl’s extensive choice of explicit words.

Based on her actions, she is certainly not a role model to me or is she anyone I would ever want to be friends with.

Websites such as Gawker and Deadspin received the email and posted it for people to read. Other websites have also just recently posted the story and Michael Shannon, actor and musician, can be found reciting the disgraceful letter on funnyordie.com.

Since the letter has gone viral, Delta Gamma Fraternity President Laurie Petrucce Roselle and Executive Director Colleen McGuire issued a statement, as they rightfully should.

The statement addressed that the letter does not represent Delta Gamma Fraternity or the Beta Sigma chapter at the University of Maryland.

However, I’m still in shock and in disbelief that the email is actually real.

I also wonder, did this girl really think she could get away with this? Well, she’s not going to now.

The large audience she has now attracted can sit back and wait for part two of the story: this sorority sister’s consequences.

By: Maitland Mann, features staff writer

Jim Toth, commonly known as Reese Witherspoon’s husband, was arrested for a DUI this past Friday morning. Witherspoon, who is considered America’s sweetheart, was also in the car and seemed to be highly intoxicated.

When the officer pulled the couple over, Witherspoon addressed him saying, “Do you know my name?”

The officer replied, “I don’t need to know your name.”

Witherspoon snapped back with, “You’re about to find out who I am… you are going to be on national news.”

As if that isn’t bad enough, Witherspoon apparently was annoyed by how long it was taking the officer to finish her husband’s arrest and got out of the car, twice.  The second time she exited the vehicle against the officer’s orders and was arrested for disorderly conduct.

As far as Toth, he claimed to have had only one drink.  His Breathalyzer test, however, read that his blood alcohol level was .139.

This new arrest could tarnish America’s sweetheart. How hard is it for a movie star to pay for a cab home? Did Toth really think he was OK to drive?  The blood alcohol level of .139 makes me wonder which one drink he had.

The only possible silver lining for the starlet was she made a public apology for her actions which read, “I clearly had one drink too many, and I am deeply embarrassed about the things I said. It was definitely a scary situation, and I was frightened for my husband, but that is no excuse. I was disrespectful to the officer who was just doing his job. I have nothing but respect for the police, and I’m very sorry for my behavior.”

Sure, she said all the right things, and she said all she could at this point, but is that enough?  For a famous star who clearly made a mistake to say, “Do you know my name?” easily rubs the general public the wrong way.

By: Abbey Williams, features staff writer

Ben Haggerty, better known as Macklemore, is not your average musician.

His rap includes personal and deep messages, which touch on everything from condemning homophobia to acknowledging his past struggles with drug addiction.

Better known for his top-chart hits “Thrift Shop” and “Can’t Hold Us,” his most recent album “The Heist,” which he released in July 2012 with Ryan Lewis, contains some unusually sentimental lyrics.

The song “Same Love”, which became a recent anthem for many during the Supreme Court’s deliberations on marriage equality, details Haggerty’s support for his gay uncles.

The 29-year-old also discusses religion as well as his battle with drugs and alcohol in the new single “Neon Cathedral” where he says, “The liquor store is open later than the churches.”

In 2008, Haggerty attended rehab, and in a recent interview with “The Daily,” he spoke of his struggles, saying “It was either continuing to use drugs and alcohol and go that route, or get sober and clean up and pursue my music full time with one hundred percent of my creative energy behind it, and that’s what I chose”.

Another thing that sets the rapper apart from the masses is his choice to remain unsigned to a music label. He elaborates on this in his song “Can’t Hold Us”, saying, “Labels out here, now they can’t tell me nothing. We give it to the people, spread it across the country.”

Macklemore’s name is another interesting aspect to his career. He explained in a recent interview with MTV that his title originated from a high school project to name a superhero.

Haggerty continues to keep busy. He was recently engaged to his girlfriend of seven years, Tricia Davis, and tickets are currently on sale for his tour across America and the U.K.