Please keep your comments relevant to this blog entry. Email addresses are never displayed, but they are required to confirm your comments.
When you enter your name and email address, you'll be sent a link via email to confirm your comment along with a password. To leave another comment, just use the password you were given.
To create a live link, simply type the URL (including http://) or email address and we will make the link live for you. You can put up to 3 URLs in your comments. Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted ? no need to use <p> or <br /> tags.
TMZ has upgraded the comments system. Please re-register to comment.
Just last night, Bieber and Gomez hit up an A|X Armani Exchange store in NYC for some couples' retail therapy. "They both said 'I love you' to each other, but Justin said it first," a source tells us of the duo.
According to the source, they repeated the L-word many times while holding hands and stealing a few kisses. Selena even picked out some of the brand's Pima T-shirts for her man. (P.S.: Don't forget to check out the premiere of E! Special: Selena Gomez, tonight at 10 p.m. on E!)
In other celebrity sightings, Tobey Maguire celebrated his birthday at L.A.'s Campanile restaurant Monday night with a big group that included celeb pals like Leonardo DiCaprio, Kevin Connolly and Sarah Gilbert. The gang rolled in a little before 9 p.m. and got a private room in the back of the restaurant. At one point, Maguire was serenaded by the group with "For He's a Jolly Good Fellow."
Nicole Scherzinger celebrated her 33rd birthday in Las Vegas by lounging poolside at Marquee Dayclub at the Cosmopolitan and partying at Tao nightclub.
Missy Elliott has opened up about her troubled past of poverty and childhood sexual abuse.
In VH1's latest 'Behind the Music' documentary which debuted Wednesday, the highly accomplished and celebrated female rapper, who celebrates her 40th birthday Friday, reveals she grew up in dismal state of poverty in Portsmouth, Virginia. "I remember having mice in the house and my father taking some newspaper and beating me because mice was running on me while I was asleep," she revealed.
Missy's mom Patricia Elliott adds, "We didn't have running water ... We were going in a pot that sat by her bed, because we didn't have a bathroom."
Missy also shared the shocking story of sexual abuse at the hands of her 16-year-old cousin when she was only 8. She recalls, "Each day he wanted me to come to the house after school. It became sexual, which, for me at eight years old, I had no clue what that was, but I knew something was wrong."
"Being molested ... it don't disappear. You remember it as if it was yesterday," Missy adds. The rapper explains the abuse took place over the course of a year, but that she never told anyone at the time.
She also talks about witnessing the abuse of her mother at the hands of her father and her recently revealed Graves' disease diagnosis -- an incurable autoimmune disorder, which Missy had been keeping mum about since 2008.
After three years of silence, Missy publicly disclosed that she was diagnosed with the thyroid disease after experiencing a frightening loss of muscle control and suffering several other debilitating hyperthyroid symptoms, including mood swings and hair loss. Elliott turned to radiation treatment, which has greatly improved her condition, but cannot cure her of the disease. Get more at The Boombox >>>
The world according to Paris Hilton got more serious today.
Hilton home intruder Nathan Lee Parada was sentenced to two years in state prison today. Parada was found guilty of felony attempted first degree burglary April 29 for attempting to break into Hilton's house last August.
During the trial, LAPD officer Det. Kevin Romine testified that he conducted a 40 minute recorded interview with Parada after he had been apprehended. He said that during that interview, Parada told him he came in from Redlands and went straight to Hollywood where he bought a star map on the street. He said it was Parada's intent to "get money to go live on a deserted island". Parada told him he came prepared and had bought two knives?one at Big 5 and one at Target.
In his closing arguments Parada's attorney Juan Perez tried to argue that this case was only being prosecuted as felony because "Princess" Paris, as he called her, was the victim. D.A. Kaveh Faturechi emphasized, though, that Parada was there to get money and jewelry and came armed to the house with two knives.
Parada told Det. Romine he was not interested in meeting Hilton, but that he knew "she was famous and she was from a rich family." Parada also told the detective he was prepared if anyone was home to tie them up and to put something in their mouths, if needed to quiet them. Parada told Det. Romine he hit Hilton's window with the back end of one of the knives to try and break it.
Both Paris and now ex-boyfriend Cy Waits testified at the trial. Waits told the jury when he saw Parada holding knives, "I drew the gun on him and I screamed at him to drop the knives." Waits said at the time Paris was frantic running around the house looking for a phone.
Waits also testified that when they got downstairs, they saw Parada "with a smirk in his face" looking in the window. Waits said he went outside and asked him who he was. "I was polite in the beginning," but when Parada began to walk away from him, "He turned around and smirked and that is when I saw he had two large knives, a large steak knife and a large buck knife."
A jury took less than an hour to convict 32-year-old Parada.
Aaron Carter has claimed his mother called the police to report Michael Jackson for giving him cocaine and alcohol when he was just 15.
Aaron Carter has claimed Michael Jackson gave him cocaine and alcohol when he was 15.
The 'Crazy Little Party Girl' hitmaker - who spent a month in rehab earlier this year for "emotional and spiritual" issues - was friends with the now deceased King of Pop but admitted he became so "uncomfortable" with how Michael acted towards him, his mother eventually called the police.
Speaking to Australia's OK! magazine, Aaron, now 23, said: "I never talked about it... This is the first time. I do ... I miss Michael ... I have spent such incredible times with him. I did things with him that nobody else did ... But I was also troubled about what he did to me.
emotional and spiritual issues - was friends with the now deceased King of Pop but admitted he became so uncomfortable
"Yes, he gave me wine. I mean, I could have refused, but I was 15.
"He gave me cocaine. I felt weird about that and other stuff ... We spoke afterwards, hours and hours, on the phone. I admired Michael, but his behaviour bothered me a lot. Then my mother called the police..."
Aaron - whose brother is Backstreet Boys star Nick Carter - is currently working on a new album in the hope of re-launching his music career and his manager Johnny Wright believes his time in rehab will help him succeed.
Johnny said: "Several months ago Aaron came to me to help him return to music and to restart his career. He has been in Orlando working on a new album and perfecting his live show and his physical body. Aaron, understanding the challenges and hard work it would take to get himself back to the top, requested to take some time before we started to heal some emotional and spiritual issues he was dealing with.
The former ?X-Files? actor finished his treatment and the couple got back together in 2009.� They have two children together, daughter Madelaine, 12, and son Kyd, 9.
Tea will appear in the new flick ?Tower Heist?, which also stars Ben Stiller, Eddie Murphy and Casey Affleck.
David will continue his role as a writer on the fifth season of ?Californication? on Showtime.
Following his performance with soul singer Jill Scott at the BET Awards, Idris Elba stopped to answer questions from the press/media. One question posed by Cheri Saunders of Black Press Radio struck a nerve in his body. When asked to … Continue
Denise Richards has become a mom for the third time after she adopted a newborn baby girl, whom she named after her late mother.
Former Bond girl Denise Richards, 40, adopted a baby girl from the United States.
Richards already is mom to Sam, 7, and Lola, 5, from her marriage to actor Charlie Sheen.� Denise was married to Charlie from 2002 to 2006.
And now she?s added another little girl to her family!� There will be lots of estrogen in that home!
Denise?s rep confirms the adoption, stating, ?Eloise Joni Richards is named after Denise?s mom (Joni), and Denise and her daughters Sami and Lola chose the name Eloise. Denise and Eloise?s big sisters couldn?t be happier and feel incredibly blessed.?
Denise?s mother passed away four years ago after battling cancer.
New footage has surfaced from the Paulina Rubioarrest -- showing the handcuffed singer quietly entering a police car after she was popped for yelling at an officer in Florida.
TMZ broke the story, Rubio was arrested for disorderly conduct, obstruction of justice and refusal to obey a lawful command following a minor car accident on Saturday.
Rubio was placed inside the police vehicle -- but she was NOT taken to jail ... in part because she told cops she had to get home to breastfeed her child.
According to the police report, Rubio yelled at the first officer who responded to the car accident scene ... referring to cops as a "bunch of liars."
Rubio was eventually issued a summons to appear in court at a later date.�
More than 30 years ago, Steve Martin immortalized King Tut in song. Now he has paid lyrical homage to another historical figure, Paul Revere. The only difference between the tunes? "One is accurate," Martin, 65, says. (You mean King Tut wasn't born in Arizona before moving to Babylonia?)
By John Dunham, AP
Steve Martin plays with the Steep Canyon Rangers June 23 at the River of Music Party in Owensboro, Ky.
By John Dunham, AP
Steve Martin plays with the Steep Canyon Rangers June 23 at the River of Music Party in Owensboro, Ky.
The actor/comedian/writer/musician will be performing the just-released Me and Paul Revere with bluegrass band the Steep Canyon Rangers on PBS' annual A Capitol Fourth special (Monday, 8 p.m. ET).
Told from the point of view of the patriot's literal sidekick ? his horse, Brown Beauty ? it's the "REAL story of Paul Revere!" as Martin tweeted Wednesday ? vs., say, comments about ringing bells and firing warning shots uttered a few weeks ago by a certain potential presidential contender.
Martin, however, is generous when it comes to parsing Sarah Palin's remarks. "On one hand, it's actually quite accurate," says Martin, who based the facts in his song on Paul Revere's Ride, the 1994 book by Brandeis University historian David Hackett Fischer, which he read several years ago. (Indeed, during the height of the Palin hubbub, Martin tweeted something relatively sympathetic to some of what Palin argued, that the Boston silversmith warned the British: "Paul Revere did not warn that 'the British are coming,' because all the citizens WERE British. There was no America yet.")
Still, he's staying away from any partisan nitpicking. "My song is a historical song, not a political song," he says. That said, if it inspires people to delve deeper into the country's revolutionary past, he's thrilled. The true story is "actually just as interesting as the mythological history of Paul Revere's ride."
Martin is now on tour with the Rangers, promoting his bluegrass album Rare Bird Alert. He wrote the songs, sings on some of them ? as do the Dixie Chicks and Paul McCartney ("an unlikely get, as you can imagine") ? and plays his trademark banjo. The "extremely" well-received Me and Paul Revere closes each show. It's Martin's first tour in a long while.
"I didn't even know if I could play the banjo for two hours," he says. Back in the day, touring was about performing solid comedy for 1� hours. "But now I have sort of comedy leading into a song and it's a really fun form, three minutes of comedy and then a song for three minutes. It breaks things up." And with the Rangers jamming along, he's not alone up there.
Likewise, he has company for his PBS gig, including Jordin Sparks and Glee's Matthew Morrison. Though he's not an avid watcher of Glee?his wife, writer Anne Stringfield, is ? "I'd be on it in two seconds," he says. "I know it's a fabulous show."
Martin is, however, an avid user of that other pop phenomenon: Twitter. Since joining last September, he has amassed 1.3 million followers and thrown out more than 2,300 tweets.
"I'm just doing it free-form and making it up as I go along," Martin says. "It actually is fun for me. It's funny to be walking down the hallway and have a tweet appear in your mind ? and not knowing really where it comes from. That unpredictability to myself might mean it's unpredictable to the audience in the same way."
For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.
We've updated the Conversation Guidelines. Changes include a brief review of the moderation process and an explanation on how to use the "Report Abuse" button. Read more.
Did model Amber Rose?s sending of naughty photos to Nicki Minaj?s former boyfriend, Safaree, cause their split last year?� Well, that?s what sources are claiming.
Mediatakeout.com had an interesting story that were accompanied by some very explicit photos of Amber Rose, reporting that she may have been the reason Nicki Minaj ended her relationship with her ex-boyfriend.
For the record, Amber Rose says those reports are totally false.
A source from an insider in the Young Money camp revealed, ?At Nicki?s birthday in Vegas on [December 9th] weekend, Nicki caught her boyfriend Safaree in Amber?s room? she knew something was going on. Later to find out by going into Safaree?s phone, [Nicki learned] that Amber was sending Safaree naked pictures of herself via bbm.?
Nicki and Safaree reportedly split over the incident, but Safaree just claimed Amber was trying to get with him.
Amber, 28, who is currently dating rapper Wiz Khalifa, denies the reports, tweeting:
?These blogs do nothing but try to ruin ppls lives I DID NOT send pics to anyones boyfriend pls stop with the lies. Its so ridiculous. smh
?Yall been doing this to me for 3 years now it shld be illegal to write fake stories about ppl the media never wants to see anyone happy.?
You can see Amber Rose?s graphic dirty nude photos here.� NSFW for sure!
OK, even we'll admit to being a little bit skeptical about Courtney Stodden's age upon breaking the news last week that the aspiring pop singer had tied the knot with 51-year-old actor Doug Hutchison.
Let's face it. The girl arguably seems pretty mature (in the looks department, at least) for a 16-year-old, something that was certainly not lost on the nearly 900 folks who commented on our original story about the newlyweds.
Well, E! News has just obtained Stodden's birth certificate, and you won't believe what it reveals...
Guess we can now all breathe a little easier knowing that Stodden wasn't lying about her age. Deception, after all, is no way to start off a marriage. That would be weird.
Don't worry, fans: Justin Bieber won't be promoting perfume forever.
The singer is already planning his next album, although it's unlikely to hit stores any time soon. In an interview with MTV, Justin said of the eventual CD:
"I want to] write a lot myself. I will be working with a lot of other producers and stuff like that, but I'm just writing a lot, writing on tour."
Fans have plenty of options to listen to until Bieber does take over the charts with his next release, of course. He's already come out with (deep breath...) My World, My World 2.0, Never Say Never - The Remixes and My Worlds Acoustic.
Expect to hear more of the latter down the road.
"I've done a lot on my acoustic guitar, so it's gonna have that vibe. I'm not gonna really limit myself... I know there's country music, there's rock music, but my music is different. My voice is not meant for any style. I just want to make music."
Should we bother to ask: Are you excited for a new album from Justin Bieber?
She?s been confined to her Venice, California home for the past thirty-five days, and today (June 29) Lindsay Lohan is officially a free woman.
The ?Georgia Rule? actress has completed her house arrest sentence and TMZ reports that her ankle bracelet tracking device was removed at 10:20AM PT.
From here, LiLo will still have plenty of eyes on her via probation, and she?ll also complete 480 hours of community service - with the report stating that she plans to get service underway later today..
Additionally, Lindsay has to enroll in a class about shoplifting alternatives, and complete some psychological evaluation.
The new Transformers movie is Optimus Prime-d to be Hollywood's first big, fat blockbuster of a lean box-office year. In fact the Michael Bay is so confident you'll love this newest adventure that it's hitting some IMAX theaters early. So can Shia LaBeouf redeem the franchise after that, um, less than amazing second installment? Is Rosie Huntington-Whiteley ready to fill Megan Fox's shoes?
Here's what you need to know before hitting theaters:
1. It's Got "Some of the Most Technically Challenging Sequences Ever Shot." Michael Bay says so himself. And since the man used James Cameron's crew from Avatar for Transformers: Dark of the Moon, the man gets the benefit of the doubt.�
2. It's a Real, Live 3-D Movie:Conversion, schmonversion! Bay shot this baby with 3-D cameras. This is why he, Bay, cannot recommend strongly enough that you see Dark of the Moon in 3-D. (Seriously, those lower-priced 2-D tickets are totally ruining�everything!)
3. It's Not Opening on Wednesday:� Nope, it's opening in just under 150 IMAX 3-D theaters on Tuesday night, just ahead of its formal release. That ought to give the movie more time to impress. Exhibitor Relations box-office analyst Jeff Bock expects Dark of the Moon to "blow up like a firecracker," and hit $185 million on the domestic front by Monday's Fourth of July holiday.�
4. It's Not Afraid to Take On?and Take Down?Chicago: Do you have any idea which major metropolis was threatened in Green Lantern? In the latest Transformers, there is no mistaking that the Autobots and Decepticons destroy the Windy City. "Chicago gave us so much latitude," Bay told the New York Times. "We had blocks and blocks we were able to shut down at a time."
And according to an early-bird review from HitFix, Bay's team made good use of the full-access pass. "It's so strange to see a city as recognizable as Chicago take this sort of beating," the site said, "and it's a reminder that many movies try to find cheap and generic solutions to their third acts."
5. It's Got a Brand-New Megan Fox! When Shia LaBeouf's love interest from the first two movies quit or got fired, critics, if not audiences, probably worried they wouldn't have the world's "worst" actress to kick around anymore. Enter Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. The Victoria's Secret model's performance in Dark of the Moon inspired London's Daily Mail to assert that Fox's sub "can't act for toffee." Awesome!
Now, that we know no Meryl Streep's gonna bog down the action, where do we get them IMAX 3-D tickets...?
Hulk Hogan?s ex-wife, Linda, has written a damaging tell-all book about her life with the famous wrestler.� Linda says Hulk would fly into rages and she feared for her life.� Check out Linda?s interview with Matt Lauer here.
In Linda Hogan?s book, entitled ?Wrestling the Hulk: My Life Against the Ropes?, she talks about being afraid her then-husband would kill her in a drug-fueled rage.
Linda told ?Today Show? host Matt Lauer that Hulk physically abused her, saying he pinned her to their bed with his hands around her throat.
?I did not want to be a statistic, like Nicole Simpson,? she said dramatically to Lauer.
Here?s Linda Hogan talking to Matt Lauer on ?Today? show:
Hulk?s former wife said she never told anyone because she worried she would end his career as one of the biggest names in pro wrestling.
?Had I said something the carpet would have been pulled up underneath his career,? Linda stated. ?I don?t know what my kids would have done. They were little at the time.?
Linda said the last straw came in 2008, when she discovered her husband had had an affair. She said Hulk had cheated on her about 10 years into their 25 year marriage.
The Hogans appeared with daughter Brooke and son Nick in a reality show called ?Hogan Knows Best? and said the show actually covered up the stress and strain of their marriage. ?You fake it until you make it,? she said.
Linda saiddrugs were common in their home and in the wrestling world.
?Drugs were always around,? she said of life with her ex-husband. ?There was a constant flow pain pills, anti-inflammatories, and a lot of them did take steroids.?
Lauer emphasized that Hulk refused to comment on Linda?s claims made in her book.
Lindsay Lohan began her house arrest on May 26 after admitting to stealing a diamond necklace.
LOS ANGELES - Lindsay Lohan is planning a "low key" party in Los Angeles to celebrate the expected end of her house arrest today and her 25th birthday on Saturday, her mom says.
"She's staying in Los Angeles and planning a quiet birthday dinner," Dina Lohan told the Daily News.
"It will be very low key with family and close friends. And then she plans to return to her community service right away on Monday," she said.
Dina said reports that the Long Island-raised actress planned to join ex-girlfriend Samantha Ronson and fellow actress Chloe Sevigny at a Hamptons bash were wrong.
"Hopefully she'll get back to New York soon to celebrate with her grandmother, who's 85 and doesn't really like to fly. But there's no party in the Hamptons," Dina said.
Lohan, 24, started house arrest at her posh Venice, Calif, townhouse May 26 after admitting she took a diamond necklace from a jewelry store.
The judge sentenced her to 480 hours of community service and 120 days in jail, but Lohan scored house arrest because she was a non-violent offender and the jail is overcrowded.
Lohan, still on probation for her 2007 DUIs, spent her home detention cooking, reading scripts and hosting a rooftop party that got her into trouble after she failed a booze test.
Hillary Clinton's former intern is hoping to work under the former first lady once again ... in a brand new XXX spoof� ... and, of course, she wants to know her "boss" ... inside and and out.
TMZ has obtained photos of former political hopeful turned porn star Sammie Spadesauditioning Hillary-alikes for her upcoming porno movie.
Adding to the already massive amount of hype, ?Transformers: Dark of the Moon? held its New York City premiere tonight (June 28).
The action-packed third installment of the uber-popular series drew quite a crowd in Times Square, as stars like Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington Whiteley, Tyrese Gibson, Patrick Dempsey and Josh Duhamel all showed up.
Also on-hand for the "Transformers" premiere were famous siblings Willow and Jaden Smith, Alessandra Ambrosio, Erin Heatherton and singing sensation Gabrielle Union.
During a recent interview, LaBeouf chatted about the future of the franchise, and that he?ll be going out with a bang with this movie.
"I just don't think right now there's anywhere to take Sam. If you'd asked me fifteen years ago if I would be here, I would've said, 'No way.' I don't have a grand plan. There's not this grand scheme. I just fall into movies. I'm blessed in that regard. The movies I've been involved in, it's never been plotted and planned and picked.?
?I was seventeen when I met [director] Michael [Bay], and I'm sort of Michael Bay-raised. I've learned a great deal from Michael, as a person, as an actor, as a person on set. And it's not that I don't enjoy working with Michael. I love working with Michael. I would do any movie Michael wants to do. I just don't think there's anywhere to take it with Sam."
Glenn Beck and his family attended a screening of Alfred Hitchcock's The 39 Steps in Bryant Park on Monday night, but the host explained on his radio show today that he was greeted with anything but a warm welcome.
"It was a hostile situation," he said, detailing how wife Tanya had wine "intentionally kicked on her back" and how a man pointed at Tanya and Beck's daughter and screamed: "We hate conservatives here!"
No one told the trouble makers to knock it off, Beck continued.
"I apologize to anybody who had their movie experience wrecked because of the people that found it so necessary to spew hatred," he went on. "But there's nothing I can do about it."
Beck described the harassers as "arrogant 25-year olds" and said they were the "most hateful people I've ever seen." But there's a hope for these lost souls... if only they realize it soon.
"All I could think of about the people around me all night was I feel sorry for you. I really feel sorry for you... you are so lost... and so convinced that you are absolutely 100% right, and you are helping build a system that is fueled by hate. (Read more...)
Nigel Lythgoe (left) and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge
Michael Williams/FOX; Eddie Mulholland/REX USA
Nigel Lythgoe can now add the title "royal party planner" to his overwhelming resume.
The reality star producer and judge is helping coordinate the British Academy of Film and Television Arts "Brits to Watch" event on July 9 at the Belasco Theater in Los Angeles, which will welcome Prince William and Kate.
"On behalf of BAFTA I would like to say, 'It's absolutely fantastic,'" Lythgoe said of the opportunity to host the royal newlyweds adding, "On behalf of Nigel Lythgoe, 'Aaaaaaahhhhh!'"
When it comes to planning such a prestigious event with the royal couple in town, Lythgoe is feeling the pressure. "It's really tough," he tells PEOPLE. "We've had to keep it secret for so long because we couldn't reveal anything because of security, so now ? we are running around."
Lythgoe and countless volunteers are working tirelessly to organize and arrange the event so that all 42 artists-to-watch, selected by BAFTA, will be highlighted properly at the event. "My job is to put together a big video film of how successful Brits are here in America," Lythgoe says.
The invitations are out, and at each table for eight, the higher echelon of film and television companies will join two Brits, he explains, "So it is very exciting for the young talent."
The A-list event will blend Hollywood star power with royal elegance. "The whole concept of ["Brits to Watch"] is that we are introducing emerging British young talent to the elite of Hollywood," Lythgoe says. "And of course, Prince William and Kate are acting as the magnets that will draw the superstars to the event. But in truth we are enjoying doing this for the British Academy."
Dave McClure is a greedy venture capitalist & founding partner at 500 Startups, an internet startup seed fund and incubator program in Mountain View, CA. He likes to hang out with entrepreneurs, and occasionally help or invest in their startups if they are foolish enough to let him.� Dave has been geeking out in Silicon Valley for over twenty years, and has worked with companies such as PayPal, Mint, Founders Fund, Facebook, LinkedIn, SlideShare, Twilio, Simply Hired, O'Reilly Media, Intel, & Microsoft. Years ago he used to do real work like coding or marketing or running conferences, but these days he mostly does useless stuff like sending lots of email, blogging, and hanging out on Facebook and Twitter. Dave also likes to play ultimate frisbee when his knees don't hurt.� You can find Dave @his blog Master of 500 Hats & on Twitter @davemcclure.
Jennifer Chin & Elizabeth Yin are CoFounders of Launchbit.
Jennifer is a graphic and web designer, who in the last 15 years has developed graphics and frontend user interfaces for startups, athletes, universities, orchestras, and of course for her own sites. She holds a B.A. in Chemistry and Physics from Harvard and a Ph.D from MIT in Materials Science.
Elizabeth is an internet marketer and backend programmer, who has done marketing for startups and was a marketing manager at Google. Prior to becoming a marketer, she wrote code for startups during the dot com era and holds a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Stanford and an MBA from MIT Sloan.
As Chief Executive Officer of khu.sh, Prerna Gupta brings extensive experience in social media product management and viral marketing to the Khush team. She previously founded Yaari, an Indian dating site which grew to over 2 million members. Prerna studied Economics and Computer Science at Stanford University and worked on marketing strategy at Monitor Group and early-stage deal sourcing at Summit Partners before making the move to entrepreneurship. Her favorite instrument is her voice. You can find Prerna on her blog & on Twitter @prernagupta
Part II
Pemo: So the big question obviously with my interviews is: How have you found the investing scene & investors towards you as females?� You've been in the Valley obviously your whole life, have you noticed any bias or do you notice that it's tougher for you girls to actually pitch for funding?
Elizabeth: You know it's really hard to say.�
I really only have a couple of experiences in fund raising.� First time around was with my failed startup & everybody said no! I think there were people who would have said yes without any hesitation if we actually had a market & an interesting business.
Second time around we've done things very differently.� We actually haven't actively raised money but people have actually come to us with offers. So it's different this time around! So now we have more of a choice.� I haven't actually noticed a comparison.� It's not like I have a twin who is a male that I can compare notes with or anything.
Pemo: You've got nothing to compare it to.
Dave: Did you have any different experiences?� You guys were in Boston for a little bit & comparing the market environment there versus here? Or at least some reactions?
Pemo: Yes tell us about that.
Elizabeth: Yeah so we heard a lot of entrepreneurs in Boston say that it was a lot harder out there. I actually know a number of entrepreneurs who have moved here for that reason. But we personally have not experienced that.
Pemo: OK, OK & as regards women entrepreneurs in Boston.� Would they be finding it tougher?� I know Fred Destin said when I interviewed him that they'd had a big conference a few days before & there was one woman there from Krush (her website). But there was only one woman in the whole audience of 50 or 60 people.
Elizabeth: There are definitely fewer but it's hard to say percentage wise because I think the startup scene is a lot smaller out there. But there are more times when I'm there, that I'm the only woman at an event.
Pemo: OK, ok so you notice it more there?
Elizabeth: Yeah.
Dave: Although strangely I think we funded 3 startups out of Boston & all of them have women on their team.�
Pemo: Oh interesting, it's taking advantage of the situation
Dave: It's so weird again!� I think it was our mentors there who funnelled those across.� One of whom is also a woman.
Pemo: Great ok.
Prerna: I personally think that it's changing really rapidly. I do think in the traditional vc space there is some bias.� I don't think it's intentional.� I don't think that these are jerks that are sexist & they watch a woman come into the office & they decide right away that they're not going to fund her.� I think a lot of it is what Dave was saying earlier, which is that you fund what you know. It's a human tendency to look for heuristics. Their brains very quickly look for generalizations that they can make to indicate whether a person is going to be successful or not.
When they've seen people year after year fit a certain pattern: a certain age, they're white, they're male, they dress a certain way, they have certain mannerisms: facial expressions or things that they say, their tone of voice. These things indicate success to them.�
When a woman comes in, maybe speaking more softly or with different body language, I think it's just harder. You don't have those same indicators that say ok this person is going to be successful, the market is going to consider this person important.� And there's some validity to it actually, because it's not just the vcs that think that.� All the business partners & everyone else in the market also use those same heuristics.� I think that's the reason that it happens implicitlty.� But it's changing!� The way that its changing is that as more women come into the market, as more women try & prove themselves, as some visionary investors give those women chances (Laughter), it changes!� Everyone's heuristics change & it's happening very rapidly right now.
Pemo: Yes I would say definitely last year & this year has been the peak.� It just feels like a big shift is happening, doesn't it?� And we're in the middle of that?
Elizabeth: Yeah, you can definitely feel it!
Pemo: And obviously we have path finders like Dave here.
Dave: Ahh I would still say that I've just had the good fortune of investing in a couple of women CEOs early: Rashmi Sinha @Slideshare probably 3 or 4 years ago. Victoria Ransom @Wildfire a couple of years ago.�
Both of them made a lot & both of them are doing really well.� So it was much easier to continue doing more of that having those as successful examples.
Pemo: Tell me what was your experience as regards raising funding?� Have you experienced part of these biases or challenges for yourself?
Prerna: In a way I've had a similar experience to you guys. This is my second startup.� My first one failed. I had a ton of vc meetings for the first one & we weren't able to raise vc money. We did raise angel money for the first one & I did feel a lot of times in some of those meetings some of that bias. Some of it was obviously: the company failed so maybe there was some validity also that had nothing to do with the fact that I was a woman.
Dave: Those assholes were right! (Laughter)
Prerna: So for the second startup, it's going a lot better.� We haven't raised vc money.� We've had a few vc meetings but we were never really interested in raising venture.
Dave: Sorry just to clarify I'm a vc, you have raised vc money.,
Prerna: I still think that Dave is an angel.
Dave: Those damn vcs.� Shit you're invested without me figuring it out. (Laughter)
Prerna: I feel that angels & angel types tend to be much more open in general.� But I think it's changing & I don't perceive any barrier for our company when we're ready to go out & raise some money, even with all of our red flags.
Dave: I think it's not easy doing a startup, raising money.� All of this is low probability for everyone. I really think it's much more based on just seeing role models & examples in front of you that do it.�
For either the investor or the entrepreneur having someone that you have personal experience with who's been successful, either raising money or getting a business off the ground, just makes it a lot easier for you to envision yourself doing it.� Particularly if they're the same shape, size & color as you makes it a lot easier to envision yourself doing it.
Pemo: And you've got some mentors on board who are women, I gather?
Dave: Yeah that has been intentional.
Pemo: So that must be quite helpful as regards them connecting with younger women?
Dave: It's still a minority, probably around 15 to 20% of our mentors are women.� Some of them are founders also but some of them are vcs who are women & other successful business owners who are women & people with operational expertise either in engineering or online.� Yes so construction of the mentor group is probably a lot more intentional than the portfolio in terms of gender & diversity & language.
Pemo: OK so here's the big question for you girls.� How is it working with Dave? (Laughter) Don't hold back!� Give us a bit of honesty here.
Prerna: I think it's apparent even just from this interview.� Dave is really open, he's really honest! I don't notice any difference.�
I'm not reminded all the time that I'm a female entrepreneur.� I just feel like I'm an entrepreneur. The fact that I'm a woman is not really an important part of my identity as an entrepreneur.� I think that's the key thing, I think that's really important.
Pemo: And so you'd recommend another female entrepreneur to pitch to Dave?
Prerna: Absolutely. (Laughter)
Pemo: If she had a good business?
Dave: Right
Pemo: And there was a win:win for him?
Dave: On the risk of tarnishing my image: I think it's impossible to completely ignore the human sexuality issues & other sensitive issues in all contexts.
Pemo: Thank you for talking about that.
Dave: So Prerna being a very attractive entrepreneur is not something that I've ignored completely. I think you always have to fight biases one way or another when you're making investments.� Sometimes its a positive & sometimes its a negative but it does enter into the equation.� I think if I believe in what I'm doing as a venture capitalist, you take risk in all forms & match it.� That's part of the equation. So that's really the best thing in investing in couples or music or other parts of the world.� We do because we think there are successful entrepreneurs everywhere, all shapes, sizes, colors, whatever.� Occasionally we think, when other people don't think that's true, we also even want to do that more. Both philosophically that's true & from a very selfish investment point of view it's also true.
Pemo: Fantastic, thank you.
Prerna: One thing that I just want to say about this whole issue of sexuality which I think is really important.�
Pemo: I'm so glad someone's brought it up!
Prerna: I think that this is one issue that definitely affects women from a really early age.� The reason we don't have more women in technology & as a result more women in entrepreneurship is because there's this tension.� And again it's a human tension, individuals are not bad people, they're not doing it on purpose.� I think when you're a woman being attractive is one of the most important things you can do as a woman, as a human female. For whatever reason, being intelligent & being powerful, these things are at odds with being sexually attractive for a woman. We are very sensitive to this at a young age. I think if you have to choose between the two, a lot of women go towards being attractive.� That is one thing that I hope will change.� It's something that we're fighting against with evolution. But I think we are capable of changing that with more role models & understanding that you can be more than just one thing. You can be a human being & there are different parts of that.� If you're a woman & you want to be sexually attractive, it's ok to do that & also to try & be successful & powerful.
Pemo: And so you think that that may be one of the reasons that's holding women entrepreneurs back?
Prerna: I do & I don't think it's explicit.� I think it just happens very early on.
Dave: It may also even be a bias on the entrepreneur's side & investors who won't invest in women where there's a concern that tension may arise?
Pemo: That that may become an issue? It is interesting because no other investor or founder has spoken about this issue.� So thanks Dave for bringing it up! Although it's the most obvious issue? So it's just interesting that everyone has skirted around that.� I appreciate that.
Pemo: I was wondering how it is for you guys working with Dave?� Can you give us some feedback?
Elizabeth: I would agree with everything you've said. One thing about the gender thing is that Dave has a reputation for cussing.�
Pemo: Oh has he, I haven't heard that??? (sarcasm)
Elizabeth: But he cusses less at the women than at the men.� I haven't done any analytics about this but... that would be my guess.
Dave: That's new information.
Pemo: So he holds back a bit?
Elizabeth: I would guess that, I don't know?
Prerna: We just get more respect!
Elizabeth: Or maybe we need less cussing?
Pemo: Yeah maybe you're just much better than the guys?
Dave: I've gotta do some navel gazing on that one. (Laughter)� I know I've written a couple of posts that really don't make me seem like the most ardent defender of women's rights.� One in particular where Rashmi came to my defense, but a bunch of other people were ripping on me for it.
Elizabeth: I don't think I've seen that one, I'll have to look at that one.
Dave: Yeah something about nuts & faces which I won't get into now.
Pemo: Well look thanks so much all of you for your time today, really appreciate it.� Really appreciate your feedback, also for that very pertinent piece about sexuality which obviously is a core issue in this.� So thanks to all of you.
Missy Elliott has opened up about her troubled past of poverty and childhood sexual abuse.
![Thriller [25th Anniversary Edition CD + DVD ] (Original Cover)](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_utIlGJdW12Y82uOJtTB8DNqFkXvmzpmCq4cMMnTu9RHLrbEv626-CgUwU2Z50JfILNFyxae4JYeRFJzupLzy6TKCGTz5DC2Y-KkgUa2DSM-iaHGOOsUgVUCQPhHcl3=s0-d)
![Meet The Spartans [Blu-ray] [2008]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_viMd0iUKllKBX__hd-EGurDmJldohcs4_wg6CG8EQd1pFaeTjeWrMxrwkIvoBTxvBxN70FmjhG_2uIln0ye5xZF92lgZ9Cxtc6ZZff_VlHELNT50OP9sY-Q-Af70z9=s0-d)
![300 [2007] [DVD]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_tZzWwsCPZaD8Bbb8gIu_nF8k8LqGwcq3oqzGpVYNvce4uuD04m3rP7zV9daegow_ZR3mSf7NrZiPlycQrhdIam4KLzyckzoJmGcpEi7fI09aM7K7kim_TXRBolW_EV9g=s0-d)
![Michael Jackson - History- Video Greatest Hits [DVD] [1995]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_v8A6G2InDOO2ZE3E38PSaw6lTQAvIZuBXZSDoTVYC_1NADAfGg8M1hySn852cLii92rAgq4g6cOF-Fy2_b-7hVWWQm_YfVr6vrCvikQaC4LL3phM8ZLwPGTNlsUB-LYg=s0-d)
![When Harry Met Sally [DVD] [1989]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_uJTYvW6gOzrckJYLqLVSDl0TGKJPM9jGWxj7xni50ohjT99MAgbPcH_MkA-nD366t6d3bH4k-734tglGZAly7VUndM2tJrjQSqu2KcMxPAi8WgWxW5251Ou8wtYxsxhQ=s0-d)
Dave McClure is a greedy venture capitalist & founding partner at