Miami’s own Vanilla Ice: a one-hit wonder’s remarkable second act

He still remembers that moment, even as the chaos of his life swirled about him two decades ago. On the upside of his epic hit, Ice Ice Baby, Robert Van Winkle surveyed what his soaring career had afforded — the cars, the parties, the good times and this modern pad on Star Island. It was a professionally designed showcase of flash, but deeply bereft of soul. “I felt like...

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Timeline: Kim Dotcom’s year, from Megaupload to Mega

AUCKLAND (Reuters) – Here are the milestones in the past year for Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom. Dotcom plans to launch on January 20 a new online file storage system, known as Mega.January 20, 2012 – Seventy armed New Zealand police raid Megaupload founder Kim Dotcom’s mansion outside Auckland, acting on a request from the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation.Dotcom and his colleagues Finn Batato,...

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Michelle Obama on Inauguration President Barack Obama

ET's Rocsi Diaz sat down first with First Lady Michelle Obama at the Kids' Inaugural Concert to discuss a variety of topics from her new hairstyle and birthday celebration to Lance Armstrong. RELATED: Actors Who've Played Presidents Mrs. Obama debuted her shoulder-length bob with eye-level bangs via Twitter on her birthday, Thursday, January 17, and she told Rocsi that Dr. Jill Biden may have had...

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O and Israel, apart

Shortly after the United Nations General Assembly voted in late November to upgrade the status of the Palestinians, the government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that it would advance plans to establish a settlement in an area of the West Bank known as E-1, and that it would build 3,000 additional housing units in east Jerusalem...

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Norwegian Cruise Line launches strong IPO

Miami-based Norwegian Cruise Line joined its larger local competitors on Wall Street Friday in a strong debut.Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. raised nearly $447 million in an initial public offering of about 23.5 million shares and saw stocks sail 30 percent in trading. Shares closed Friday afternoon at $24.79, up $5.79 from the $19 offering price set late Thursday night....

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King’s son brings message to South Florida

The past few days have kept the eldest son of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. busy. He’s been to at least three states to carry on his father’s message: ending violence and learning from historical wrongs.In a Fort Lauderdale Baptist church early Friday, he delivered another directive:“A nation is judged on how we treat our most prized possession,” Martin Luther King III said....

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Twitter co-founders move Obvious Corp into spacious new digs

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – Evan Williams and Biz Stone, the co-founders of Twitter, have leased three sprawling floors in a historic downtown San Francisco tower for their low-profile start-up incubator, The Obvious Corporation.Obvious said Friday it leased 75,000 square feet at the busy 760 Market Street location – known as the Phelan Building – in one of the city’s larger commercial real estate deals...

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Drew Barrymore on Oprah's Next Chapter

Drew Barrymore opens up about her complicated childhood and the lessons she's learned when it comes to being a new mother on Oprah's Next Chapter, and we have a sneak peek!Pics: Celebs and Their Cute Kids Marking the first time cameras have ever been allowed inside her home, Drew also talks to Oprah about her new marriage to Will Kopelman, shares details about their newborn baby Olive, and reveals...

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Bam’s gun-plan misfire: using children as props

The Issue: President Obama’s press conference on gun-control, in which he was surrounded by children.***President Obama’s big plan to curb gun violence is more of a wish list of things he would like to see than an actual plan to stop the violence (“Gunning for...What?” Editorial, Jan. 17). Obama should be ashamed of himself for exploiting children to promote...

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Prices for Miami Beach luxury condos soar to records

Ultra-luxury condominiums on South Beach are fetching nosebleed prices.On Tuesday, a penthouse at the Setai Resort at 2001 Collins Avenue closed for $27 million — the highest price ever for a South Florida condominium, according to real estate agents. “We’re definitely seeing the market turning upward,” said Jeff Miller, of Zilbert International Realty in Miami, who represented...

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North Dade man claims self-defense in killing of intruder

When a burglar broke into his North Miami-Dade apartment Monday night, Jordan Beswick grabbed his pistol, hid in the living room and squeezed off a volley of bullets.Unscathed, the burglar ran to the master bedroom to escape.Beswick himself ran from the apartment, but he didn’t call police. Instead, authorities say, Beswick circled around to a bedroom window...

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Ex-Red Sox pitcher Schilling puts bloody sock up for auction after video game company collapse

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – Former Boston Red Sox pitcher Curt Schilling — whose video game company underwent a spectacular collapse into bankruptcy last year — is selling the blood-stained sock he wore during the 2004 World Series.Chris Ivy, director of sports for Texas-based Heritage Auctions, says online bidding begins around Feb. 4. Live bidding will take place Feb. 23.The sock previously had been on loan...

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Lance Armstrong Confesses to Doping During All Seven Tour De France Wins

In a no-holds-barred interview with Oprah Winfrey, disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong finally admitted to years of doping while riding professionally, arguing that performance-enhancing drugs are essential to succeed in the sport.Wasting no time in the sit-down, Winfrey asked Armstrong right off the bat if he had ever used banned substances during his career. During a series of rapid-fire yes or no...

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Queens boy struck & killed by SUV

A Queens boy was struck and killed by an SUV tonight after running into the middle of a busy Ridgewood intersection, police said.The 7-year-old was standing on the sidewalk near Myrtle Avenue and Madison Street with his father when the boy darted into traffic at around 6:50 p.m., cops and witnesses said.“I saw the child lying in the street -- right on the...

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Miami Dolphins bill would bring state money to aging stadiums

A bill drafted by the Miami Dolphins would give Florida sports teams $3 million a year in state money to improve older stadiums, provided the owner pays for at least half the cost of a major renovation. Under the law, the stadium would need to be 20 years old and the team willing to put in at least $125 million for a $250 million renovation. That’s less than the $400 million...

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Scott supports review of state gun laws: ‘I want people to feel safe’

LARGO -- Gov. Rick Scott voiced his support for a broad review of Florida’s controversial gun laws by state lawmakers Wednesday, saying the state’s vital tourist economy depends on visitors being able to “feel safe” amid an increasingly well-armed population.“We have a legislative session coming up,” Scott said during a visit to the Honeywell Aerospace plant in Largo, where...

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Commentary: Background Checks? Yes, but Leave Video Games Alone

COMMENTARY | I have mixed feelings toward the White House‘s gun violence response. I agree that background checks should be required before people are allowed to buy a firearm and that an assault weapon ban should be reinstated into law. While limiting the number of bullets in a weapon’s magazine will decrease the number of deaths in a mass shooting, the public does not need high-capacity magazines....

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Kirstie Alley's Cheers Reunion

It's been nearly two decades since Cheers went off the air, but the onscreen chemistry hasn't changed between Kirstie Alley and Rhea Perlman, as seen in Kirstie's new TV Land pilot, Giant Baby.On the show, Kirstie plays a Broadway diva whose life gets up-ended.VIDEO: Kirstie Alley Celebrates 62nd Birthday with ET"You know, we were planning this when we were doing Cheers," Kirstie said of reuniting...

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The price of legal pot

Last week, the board of The Fontaine, a luxury Upper East Side co-op, sued a resident over what it alleges is a constant, overwhelming smell of marijuana wafting from his apartment. This may just be a glimpse of our future.After all, Colorado and Washington state voters just passed ballot initiatives to allow state-regulated marijuana sales. And Gov. Cuomo...

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Coral Gables culinary students learn the art of sushi making

Christian Rivas is still years away from becoming a professional sushi chef, but his hand-crafted California roll looks good enough to serve professionally.“The hard part was getting the roll to be in good shape,” Christian, a 16-year-old junior at Coral Gables Senior High, said of his first attempt. The Gables student was one of about 30 who stood in rapt attention inside...

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Support mounts to allow unlimited political contributions in Florida

TALLAHASSEE -- Florida’s campaign finance system is so riddled with holes that a state ethics watchdog group will urge lawmakers Wednesday to open the spigot and let an unlimited amount of campaign cash gush into campaign coffers.Integrity Florida, a non-profit, independent ethics advocacy organization, will tell the Houses Ethics and Elections Committee that the state should...

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Tablet Too Small? Try Lenovo’s 27-Inch ‘Table PC’

Google’s aptly-named Nexus 7 tablet made a splash when it debuted last year, at $ 199 and with a screen 7 inches across. Apple soon released its own iPad Mini to join the increasingly crowded world of miniature tablets, which — at about half the size of a regular iPad — are so small as to be pocketable.Other manufacturers, however, aren’t taking the “smaller is better” route. Microsoft‘s Surface tablet...

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Megan Fox Apologizes for Lindsay Lohan Comments

In the process of explaining her reason for removing a Marilyn Monroe tattoo on her forearm to Esquire magazine, cover girl Megan Fox unleashed what appeared to be a harsh criticism of actress Lindsay Lohan. In light of all the attention Fox's words have garnered, the star has taken to Facebook in an attempt to clarify her comments. Pics: New Mom Megan Fox's Sexiest Shoot Yet "In the newly released...

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Accused subway shover: I 'shouldn't have let this happen'

Now that’s an understatement.Accused subway pusher Naeem Davis said he was in a bad mood and “shouldn’t have let this happen” when he clashed with a drunk man on a subway platform before allegedly pushing him onto the tracks, according to court papers.“Yes, for the sake of argument, I could have walked away,” Davis told cops after he was arrested the next...

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.CO sets sights on changing ‘the fabric of the Internet’

For the millions of people who equate the Web with .com, . CO Internet is out to change that mindset.The Miami company that manages and markets the .co domain is already making impressive gains — more than 1.4 million in 200 countries have hung their businesses, blogs, personal projects or dreams on a .co virtual shingle. Still, that’s just a tiny fraction of industry titan...

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FAU professor with controversial theories on Newtown massacre says he was misunderstood

Most of the victims of the Connecticut school massacre were just like Florida Atlantic University professor James Tracy’s daughter: 7-year-old first graders at a public school.“If a similar tragedy were visited upon me and my family, I would be beside myself,” he said. “But I think one of my ways of healing would be attempting to find out what went wrong, where was the failure.”But...

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TSX off 10-month high, energy weakness offsets RIM jump

TORONTO (Reuters) – Canada‘s main stock index finished short of a 10-month high on Monday as investor optimism for Research In Motion Ltd shares over the upcoming launch of its BlackBerry 10 devices was offset by falling energy shares.Weakness in the materials sector, which includes mining stocks, also added pressure, while volatile oil prices were a drag on the energy sector. The two heavyweight...

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Pregnant Kristen Bell Gives Baby Update

A vision in lavender Jenny Packham, glowing mom-to-be Kristen Bell was all smiles as she gave ET an enthusiastic (and hysterical) update about her pregnancy on the Golden Globes red carpet Sunday evening.Joined by fiancé Dax Shepard, 38, Bell seemed to take her impending motherhood in stride when speaking with our Brooke Anderson. Fueled by tea and coffee, Bell and Shepard (respectively) were giddy...

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The beauty of Brooklyn

It’s been more than a century since Brooklyn was a separate city, but forgive residents if they think of themselves as the center of the universe. The latest feather in the borough’s cap? It can now boast of being home to the newest Miss America. Crowned Saturday in Las Vegas, Mallory Hagan is the first city winner since Bess Meyerson back in 1945. Like...

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After rough year, Carnival hopes for calmer waters

After boarding the latest addition to the Carnival Cruise Lines family, Josh Beaver sampled lasagna at the new onboard Italian restaurant, downed some drinks with his traveling companions and hit the water slides while the afternoon was still young.“So far, from what I’ve seen, there’s lots to do,” said Beaver, 33, of Holden Beach, N.C. The Carnival Breeze hadn’t even left...

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SunPass coming to Rickenbacker, Venetian causeways in 2014

The introduction of SunPass on two Miami-Dade causeways is the latest in a series of initiatives to expand use of Florida’s electronic toll-collection system beyond state highways. “We are hoping that a year from now, in 2014, the new system will be in place on both the Rickenbacker and then the Venetian Causeway,” said Michael R. Bauman, chief of the Miami-Dade public works...

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