Elderly Amish Man Caught on Film With Prostitute, Blackmailed
When a 75-year-old Amish widower slept with a prostitute, he -- we feel certain -- felt pretty bad about it the next morning. As if that guilt weren't enough for the old man, the prostitute and her boyfriend demanded $67,000 from him, claiming that they had filmed the scene with wall-mounted cameras and would upload the recording to the Internet. The pair was later arrested and, we can only imagine, the Amish man abhorred technology more than ever.
Bank Robber Gets Away With the Help of Craiglist
In October, a bank robber -- wearing a safety vest, blue shirt, face mask and goggles -- eluded police with the help of Craiglist. Just outside the bank, while the robbery was in progress, stood a group of men who were responding to a Craiglist day labor opportunity. As the advertisement required, they were all wearing safety vests, blue shirts, face masks and goggles.
Nude New Zealander Arrested After Responding to Fake Sexy Text Message
Late in 2007, a Wellington, New Zealand man received a racy text message from two anonymous "ladies," giving him only an address and a request that he show up naked. Well, he indeed showed up naked... at the home of one appalled, unsuspecting New Zealander. Both the nude Romeo and the sadistic texter were arrested, though neither were prosecuted.
Fake Craiglist Ad Costs Man Most of What He Owns
Last Spring, a post appeared on an Oregon Craigslist board stating that the owner of a specific house was leaving all of his worldly possessions (still in said house) to whoever wanted them. When homeowner Robert Salisbury rushed home -- on a tip from a woman suspicious about the offer of a free horse -- he found his house being ransacked by 30 strangers. We suggest he take that horse and collect some vengeance Clint Eastwood-style.
17-Year-Old Jailed for Stealing Virtual 'Furniture'
When a 17-year-old Dutch boy hacked into several accounts on the Second Life-style site 'Habbo' in 2007, the the law got involved. The boy was discovered to have stolen $5,800 worth of virtual furniture and knick-knacks. Apparently, crime -- whether actual or virtual -- does not pay.
Phishers Going After Your Phones in New 'Vishing' Trend
Over the past year, sneaky spammers have begun to forsake the worn-out territory of e-mail in favor of cell phones' fertile frontier. The result? "Vishing." Get it? Voice mail phishing. It might be more ominous if it didn't sound like a James Bond villain saying, "Wishing."
Burglars Break Into Restaurant, Steal HDTV, Leave Money / Food Behind
Around Halloween of last year, a truckload of thieves drove into -- that's right, into -- a Pennsylvania Mexican restaurant, where they -- apparently uninterested in the cash register -- stole a mid-grade 47-inch HDTV and fled the scene. We've all heard about how this generation is lacking in ambition, but this generation's thieves, too?
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 11)
Deane said 6:22AM on 9-02-2007
I work for a print company and we have an entire dept devoted to airbrushing and photoshop. We receive industry mags and they indicated that the Sports Illustrated cover of Beyonce was the most photoshopped photo of the year. They actually cut of inches and inches of every part of her body. The whole photo shoot was a joke. And then you have quotes by the fake saying she is saving the issue to show her kids one day how good their Mom looked. What a fake.
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Richard said 6:49AM on 9-02-2007
Photostopping is nothing new. The technology may be more streamlined today, but it's always been there in Hollywood. Look at the gorgeous old studio photographs of Myrna Loy, Joan Crawford, and Bette Davis. Stunning! But in real life, as they these actresses all admitted, they looked nothing like that. Back then, negatives were manually manipulated, and lighting and shadow counted for a lot. So if Jodi looked drop-dead gorgeous on a magazine cover, great! We all know it's an illusion, a pretty picture and nothing more. Oh, and even in the pre-photography days, good painters knew how the make their subjects look extra beautiful.
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annie said 7:11AM on 9-02-2007
I have to comment on this because it totally is the truth. One of my good friends is a photographer for a good many magazines such as Playboy, Hustler, People, Ladies Home Journal, etc. He told me and a lot of our friends that what we see on the covers and inside the pages are very RARELY the real celebrity. Their fat, stretch marks, moles, zits everything gets removed and made to look voluptuous. Stars only want to look perfect or they won't do a magazine spread. So I asked, okay lets say I want to look 50 pounds lighter and have bigger breasts. He told me to bring a picture of myself to his studio in a 8x10. I did, you wouldn't believe the magic he did with airbrushing. It is unreal and make you look like a million bucks! But he said just about every magazine with a celebrity is airbrushed in some way. And speaking of Beyonce, and JLO, I saw them in person on my honeymoon in Beverly Hills. They have the biggest butts and fattest thighs, their stomachs are flat but in person they are BIG. We saw so many celebrities in person and yes they are zitty, some fat and look awful with no MAKEUP!!!!
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Gary said 7:23AM on 9-02-2007
Richard, right on! I WANT to think those pretty ladies are just like they look. Let me enjoy my illusions. There's nothing wrong with a little fantasy!
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Donna said 7:26AM on 9-02-2007
...and we really believe these people are "perfect"
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j dawg said 7:43AM on 9-02-2007
I know one thing I have seen Sully Erna from Godsmack many times and he looks perfect.I have noticed that in his music videos they tend to make him look taller than he really is but I like him at only 5'5". One of the most beautiful men on earth:) He is not fat and zitty like the rest of em:)
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sirenrose said 7:57AM on 9-02-2007
I don't see much of a diffrence on those pictures above, just in the coloring, and maybe on some of them a little more weight.
They still look good, and some of them look better without the airbrushing, or look exactly the same.
Am I missing something?
I don't see the big deal
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perfumergurl86 said 8:05AM on 9-02-2007
If you want to know how the real person look under all that makeup, weave, airbrushing, etc, just look at their kid or kids, they tell the whole story, lmao. Ex....Charlie Sheen girls, Will Smith daughter,Brittney Spears boys, even Shiloh isn't as gorgeous as people makes her out to be. Dannilynn and Suri are some beautiful babies and Katie is really plain looking.
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Anthony Dirienzo said 8:12AM on 9-02-2007
Geeze...she's a pretty girl, I do not see that much difference. On the other hand, at my age...
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justpicky said 8:34AM on 9-02-2007
It's not , what all it's cracked up to be ....
What you see is all FAKE ......
Airbushing is artificial ........
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dorisfaye said 8:39AM on 9-02-2007
Hey, who's to say that they didn't altar the original photo to look even worse than it was? The airbrushing can go both ways! LOL And ... I'm with they guy who says Faith looks good even without the airbrushing! Cher is probably one of the best examples of what a woman can look like with a little help from "her friends" ... but a person's age tells the real story. You can't keep the wrinkles and sagging from coming, but you can certainly do something about them when they arrive. All it takes is a whole bunch of money and a career that depends on your looking great!
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Brenda said 8:44AM on 9-02-2007
Gees, I wished someone would airbrush me. I was young and slender once, but I have aged well.
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Omar said 8:46AM on 9-02-2007
Photoshop or Scalpel? Your choice.
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$$$$$ said 9:13AM on 9-02-2007
WE PAY THESE PEOPLE TO ENTERTAIN US PEOPLE!!!
The major part of this--we drive, celebs want to make $$$ !!! And "we" do NOT pay for pimply, saggy, baggy, fat, imperfect entertainment.
Seems simple to me---STOP BUYING IT!!!
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msmaguire2 said 9:22AM on 9-02-2007
To Richard-yes adults may realize that these pictures are airbrushed and not exactly real, but teens don't think in that way. I teach at an all girls' high school and I can't begin to tell you how many of them have eating disorders. you can't tell me these images don't play a part.
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Jill Gilbert said 9:39AM on 9-02-2007
I'm neither a model nor a beauty, but as a Realtor, I can't have my business card looking like a mug shot! On the other hand, I like a natural look and think Faith looks great even on the un-touched photo. Jill@JillGilbert.com
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Terry Matlen said 9:43AM on 9-02-2007
I think they do this so when you see them in person walking around, no one can notice and bother them. I know that when I'm in NYC, I NEVER recognize the celebs.
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Al said 9:48AM on 9-02-2007
What a funny subject this is! I love the "real vs. airbrushed" examples... but notice how few there are available? I'll bet those celebs guard those original photos like buried treasure. As for the non-celebs, of course the dumber ones are going to try to keep up. Here in Miami, you can actually watch people in real life scramble to catch up to the airbrushed "reality"... they don't call it "Miami Slice" for nothing! Boobs, lips, butts, skin, hair, down here it's all been magically altered to look more magazine-like. Which is fine, aesthetically, but kinda odd when you stop to think about it. I've been in the media business for years, and I've gotten so used to the standard fakery that I take it for granted. NOTHING is real anymore. NO photo is unretouched (save papparrazzi nuggets), NO autobiography is actually written by the "author", and NO music is actually performed by musicians (or when it is, it is "corrected" for pitch and rhythm problems by a computer). It's all kinda dishonest, but this is, after all, just entertainment... I say it adds to the entertainment when we get to compare the original works to the fake versions, though. Keep 'em coming!
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BigCupOSTFU said 10:06AM on 9-02-2007
The great thing about AOL is that its members are the most well-connected group of people on Earth. No matter what the topic, there are AOL readers who know all the right people! We have the inside track to all the right industry insiders, be they Playboy photographers, Entertainment historians, etc.
And the level of expertise among AOL readers is astounding. I never have to look any further when I need information, these AOL'ers have it all covered!
I wish AOL would produce an article on Amelia Earhart, so that we could finally solve that mystery as well.
Oh and about the actual article: we can't forget the hack-job on Kelly Clarkson, which reduced the woman to half her size!
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sheenabella7 said 10:18AM on 9-02-2007
I WONDER WHAT WE WOULD ALL DO IS EVERYONE SUDDENLY WENT BLIND? OH MY GOD, WE WOULD HAVE TO "SEE" THE REAL PERSON WITHIN, WHICH IS ALL THAT REALLY MATTERS.
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