"Mermaid Girl" Shiloh Pepin Has Died, At Age 10

Shiloh Pepin, the little girl born with the rare condition of "mermaid syndrome" or sirenomelia, has died. She was only 10.

Sirenomelia or mermaid syndrome, as it is commonly called, is the condition of having ones legs fused together. Shiloh Pepin had gained a wide following, via the Internet and national TV shows such as "The Oprah Winfrey Show."

Doctors had predicted Shiloh Pepin would probably only survive only for a few days after her birth, but the girl defied the odds. She died at Maine Medical Center on Friday afternoon, hospital spokesman John Lamb said, after being been hospitalized in critical condition for nearly a week.

Earlier this month, her mother, Leslie Pepin, said Shiloh came down with a cold that turned into pneumonia. Shiloh rushed to Maine Medical Center on Oct. 10 and was placed on antibiotics.

Some children have survived sirenomelia by having had surgery to separate their legs. However, Shiloh Pepin could not because she had blood vessels crossing from side to side in her circulatory system. Because of her mermaid syndrome, Pepin had only one partially working kidney, no lower colon or genital organs and the aforementioned fused legs, fused from the waist down. She had received two kidney transplants, the last one in 2007.

Here is an earlier family video:


A condolence video has already been uploaded to YouTube.

Oops: New Jackson Tune Not So New, After All

That new Michael Jackson song that was released on Monday? While advertised as new, it's really only new to Michael Jackson. Essentially, he just covered a song released in 1991.

It's true that Jackson co-wrote the song, but the song was written with Paul Anka, and the 68-year-old himself singer / songwriter was quick to correct things. Originally titled "I Never Heard," it was intended for inclusion on an Anka album. After a falling-out, Anka took back the song, and the song was eventually released in 1991 after Anka placed it with an unknown Latin singer named Sa-Fire.

The Jackson estate was quick to attribute the song to Anka, and has (rightly) agreed that Anka will receive 50% of the royalties. As he said in a video posted on TMZ:

"They realize it's a mistake, they realize it's my song, they realize it's my production of his vocal in my studio and I am getting 50 percent of the whole project, actually, which is fair."

Paul Anka was a 50's and 60's songwriter and singer, and became a teen idol in those days. He's known for hit songs like "Diana'", "Lonely Boy", and "Put Your Head on My Shoulder," and wrote Tom Jones' big hit, "She's a Lady."

Listen to "This Is It" below:

Michael Jackson's New Song Debuts Online

As promised, Michael Jackson's "This Is It," the first song from his new posthumous documentary was released online at 12:00 AM Monday morning. The documentary carries the same name, and the song is played during the closing sequences of the the movie, which opens Oct. 28th for a limited two-week run.

The documentary was created using rehearsal footage for his London comeback tour. Jackson died on June 25th due to what the Los Angeles County coroner has said was acute propofol intoxication. Propofol is a powerful anesthetic not typically used outside hospitals.

An investigation into Jackson's death is still ongoing, but the coroner has already labeled it a homicide.

Listen to the song below. To be honest, it sounds very Michael Jackson-ish.

Lucy Vodden of "Lucy in the Sky" Fame, Dies

You might (rightly) ask who Lucy Vodden is, but you probably already know of her. Or at least, you know of her as portrayed in the Beatles tune "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds." She has died after a long battle with lupus. She was 46.

The death of Lucy Vodden was announced on Monday by St. Thomas’ Hospital in London. She had been treated for lupus, a chronic disease, for more than five years.

Lucy Vodden connected with The Beatles in grade school, her grade school, that is. At that time, she befriended Julian Lennon, then 4 years old. After coming home from school one day, he showed a drawing to his father. He told John Lennon it was "Lucy in the sky with diamonds."

John Lennon turned the image into a song, and because of references in the song to "newspaper taxis" and a "girl with kaleidoscope eyes," as well as the fact that you can find the initials LSD in the title, critics thought the song's title was a veiled reference to the drug. Lennon always maintained the phrase came from his son and thus, Lucy Vodden.

Ironically, because of that connection to LSD, true or not, Lucy Vodden never liked the song. Friends who were told of her connection to it brought up the LSD angle.

After losing touch with Lucy Vodden, Julian Lennon reconnected with her in recent years when he tried to help her cope with lupus. Farewell to the girl with kaleidoscope eyes.

Watch and listen to the song.

Henry Gibson, Original Cast Member of Laugh-In, Dies at 73

His hallmark character, on a game-changing TV show, was a meek, mild-mannered poet who came out holding a large flower, beginning each poem with "A poem, by Henry Gibson." Henry Gibson, one of the original cast members of "Rowan and Martin's Laugh-In," has died. He was 73. According to his son Jon, Henry Gibson died after a short battle with cancer.

"Laugh-In" ran on NBC from 1968 - 1973. Besides Henry Gibson, the original ensemble cast included Ruth Buzzi, Judy Carne, Goldie Hawn, Arte Johnson, Jo Anne Worley and others. It was an instant hit.

"Laugh-In" became so popular that many celebrities you wouldn't think would dare darken the door of a comedy sketch show appeared. Examples included Richard Nixon, Hugh Hefner, Hugh Downs, Rod Serling, and Guy Lombardo.

Besides his poet character, in the show's famous party scenes, when the music would stop and each cast member would deliver a funny line, Henry Gibson often played a Catholic priest, sipping tea. He would put the cup on the saucer, recite his one-liner (in a serious tone), then return to sipping tea.

Of late, Henry Gibson had a recurring role on "Boston Legal" as Judge Clarke Browne.

Regarding the poetry Henry Gibson read on the show, his son Jon said, "He wrote all those himself. It was a point of pride that he only read poems that he himself wrote."

In April 1966, Hengry Gibson married Lois Joan Geiger. They had three sons: Jonathan David Gibson, Charles Alexander Gibson and James Gibson. She died in 2007.

Patrick Swayze, Hollywood Heartthrob, Dies of Pancreatic Cancer

Patrick Swayze, movie and TV star, has died of the pancreatic cancer he was diagnosed with just last year. He was 57.

His publicist, Annett Wolf, made the announcement. Swayze was first diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in March of 2008. Wolf said, “Patrick Swayze passed away peacefully today with family at his side after facing the challenges of his illness for the last 20 months.” No other details were given.

Patrick Swayze, a native Texan, began his career as a dancer. Immortality came in the form of 1987's "Dirty Dancing." He played bad-boy Johnny Castle to Jennifer Grey's Frances "Baby" Houseman in a coming-of-age romance, which became a smash hit.

After "Dirty Dancing" came "Road House" but then came the big hit, 1990's "Ghost," starring Patrick Swayze as Sam Wheat, a murdered man trying to communicate with his fiancee (Demi Moore), through a psychic played by Whoopi Goldberg. Goldberg won an Oscar for her role.

The film made pottery sexy, for any that recall the opening scene (above).

Though obviously ill, Patrick Swayze kept working despite the diagnosis. He starred in “The Beast,” an A&E drama series for which he had already made the pilot prior to the discover of cancer. Unfortunately, A&E said it had reluctantly decided not to renew it for a second season.

Patrick Swayze is survived by his wife Lisa Niemi. The couple was married on June 12, 1975. They first met in 1970 when Swayze was 18 years old. Niemi, 14 years old at the time, was taking dance lessons from Swayze's mother. Swayze and Niemi had no children.

DJ AM Found Dead in His Apartment

Another case of the "lifestyle of the rich and famous" leading to substance addiction, and later death. Celebrity disc jockey "DJ AM," AKA Adam Goldstein has been found dead in his New York apartment Friday evening. Reports indicated that drug paraphernalia was found near his body.

Goldstein, 36, or DJ AM, was a (what else) disc jockey who performed at Hollywood's most exclusive parties. Not only did he live a glamorous lifestyle and high-profile romances, he became famous for some high-profile romances, including the likes of Nicole Richie and Mandy Moore.

A rep for DJ AM issued the following statement: "Adam "DJ AM" Goldstein was found deceased this afternoon in his New York City apartment. The circumstances surrounding his death are unclear. Out of respect for his family and loved ones, please respect their privacy at this time."

Paramedics broke down the door to DJ AM's Manhattan apartment and found his body at about 5:20 PM EDT. Apparently, friends had not seen Goldstein for a few days.

In a sort of "Final Destination" moment, DJ AM was found dead nearly a year after escaping, along with Travis Barker, from a South Carolina plane crash that killed four others.

Fox News reported that DJ AM had become addicted since the crash, in which both he and Barker were burned.

"About 7 years ago he went through major drug addictions, and he worked so hard, and successfully kicked the habit. He was terrified to take any of the meds the doctors prescribed him after the crash, but the pain was so bad. Adam took them, and the need for the drugs grew, and now here we are. It's terrible that no one was able to stop him soon enough, but it just happened so fast."

Official Coroner's Report Rules Michael Jackson's Death a Homicide

The Los Angeles County coroner's office officially released Michael Jackson's autopsy results on Friday. As an earlier leak from a law enforcement official noted, the coroner ruled Michael Jackson's death a homicide.

It should be noted that a homicide is not necessarily a crime. Murder is a form of homicide, but there are cases that could be ruled "justifiable homicide." However, the designation of Jackson's death as a homicide would seemingly make charges against his personal physician more likely.

The official cause of death was determined to be acute propofol intoxication. However, a combination of other drugs was found in his system, including the sedatives Lorazepam, Midazolam, Diazepam, Lidocaine and Ephedrine. These were listed as a contributing factor.

Although the results of the autopsy were issued, via a press release, the complete toxicology report will remain sealed at the request of the Los Angeles Police Department and the District Attorney.

Dr. Conrad Murray, a Las Vegas, NV cardiologist who became Jackson’s personal physician in preparation for comeback tour, weeks before his death, is currently under investigation. Murray has previously admitted giving Jackson propofol and other sedatives for insomnia reasons on the day he died, June 25th.