Suzanne Barr

Suzanne Bisschoff van Heemskerck (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Picture of Suzanne Shaw taken at a school prize-giving where she was the special guest. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

SEP 2, 2012 11:30 AM24,731 55

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Alleged ICE ‘Mean Girl’ Suzanne Barr Steps Down, Steadfastly Denies Misconduct

 Doug Barry

After being accused of creating a sexually-charged, "frat-house-type atmosphere that is targeted to humiliate and intimidate male employees," Suzanne Barr, longtime aide to Department of Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano, resigned Saturday from her position as the chief of staff to the director of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. In a letter nabbed by the New York Times, Barr explains to ICE director John Morton her reasons for stepping down (which include not wanting allegations of her misconduct to taint the "reputation" of the ICE), while also denying that sheMean Girled anyone within the department:

In recent weeks, I have been the focus of unfounded allegations designed to destroy my reputation, but of greater concern, however, is the threat these allegations represent to the reputation of this agency and the men and women who proudly serve their country by advancing ICE's mission. As such, I feel it is incumbent upon me to take every step necessary to prevent further harm to the agency and to prevent this from further distracting from our critical work. Therefore, it is with great regret that I submit my resignation as chief of staff for Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Allegations that Barr behaved inappropriately in her capacity as a top ICE official come to us courtesy of a lawsuit filed by James T. Hayes Jr., a top federal immigration official in New York who claims that he was pushed out of a senior management position to clear the way for a less-qualified female replacement. He also says that Barr "humiliated" male employees in various sordid ways, like the time Barr allegedly stole a male staffer's Blackberry and used it to inform his female supervisor that he "had a crush on [her] and fantasized about her."

The Times observes that Barr's resignation comes over a Labor Day weekend "sandwiched between the Republican and Democratic national conventions," meaning that Barr might have hoped to avoid undue public scrutiny for stepping down. However, Rep. Peter King (R-NY), Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, has vowed to do his damndest to scrutinize the allegations against Barr...just as soon as members of Congress return from summer vacation with fresh tans and tales of fleeting romances.

Related articles

• Suzanne Barr, queen of the ICE 'frat' castle, resigns
• Immigration agency's chief of staff resigns amid misconduct probe
• Demystifying the Law: Sexual Harassment in the Workplace

Seal, Heidi Klum’s bodyguard stare daggers a

Seal, Heidi Klum’s bodyguard stare daggers at each other in faceoff outside her Manhattan digs

The confrontation took place before Seal revealed the depths of his anger in a jarring TMZ.com interview when he complained that Klum should have 'at least waited until we separated first before deciding to fornicate with the help.'

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BY CORKY SIEMASZKO / NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2012, 11:36 PM

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ANTHONY DIXON/WENN.COM

Seal and Martin Kristen, bodyguard for the singer's wife Heidi Klum, engage in a staredown July 19 in front of Klum's Manhattan pad.

Seal had a faceoff with Heidi Klum’s bodyguard a month before he publicly accused his estranged wife of sleeping with “the help.”

And if looks could kill, both the soul singer and bodyguard Martin Kristen would be dead men.

RELATED: HEIDI KLUM SPEAKS OUT ON CHEATING ALLEGATIONS

The confrontation took place before Seal revealed the depths of his anger in a jarring TMZ.com interview when he complained that Klum should have “at least waited until we separated first before deciding to fornicate with the help.”

Staring daggers at each other, Seal and Kristen exchanged what appeared to be angry words when they eyeballed each other July 19 on a Manhattan sidewalk — in front of Klum’s digs.

The stare-down ended when the disgusted-looking singer stalked off in his sandals.

Kristen remained planted in front of his reputed mistress’ address like a Doberman in black high-top gym shoes.

The “Kiss from a Rose” singer and the German-born supermodel separated in January and filed for divorce in April.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/seal-heidi-klum-bodyguard-stare-daggers-faceoff-manhattan-digs-article-1.1152088#ixzz25lGzCIa6

Michael Clarke Duncan

Michael Clarke Duncan
Duncan at the Warner Brothers Lot in Burbank, California, in January 2009.
Born	December 10, 1957 Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died	September 3, 2012 (aged 54) Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation	Actor
Years active	1995–2012
Partner	Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth (2010–2012; his death)

Michael Clarke Duncan (December 10, 1957 – September 3, 2012) was an American actor, best known for his breakout role as John Coffey in The Green Mile, for which he was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe. He was also recognized for his appearances in motion pictures such as Armageddon, The Whole Nine Yards, The Scorpion King and Daredevil, as well as voice acting roles in works such as Brother Bearand Kung Fu Panda.

Contents   [hide]  1 Early life 2 Career 3 Illness and death 4 Filmography 5 References 6 External links

Early life

Duncan was born in Chicago, Illinois, and grew up in a single-parent household with his sister, Judy, and mother, Jean Duncan (a house cleaner), after his father left.^[1][2] He always wanted to act, but had to drop out of the Communications program at Alcorn State University to support his family when his mother became ill. Duncan's large frame—6 feet 5 inches (196 cm)^[3] and 315 pounds (142 kg)—helped him in his jobs digging ditches for the People's Gas Company and being a bouncer at several Chicago clubs.^{[4][better source needed]} Duncan also played basketball at Kankakee Community College and for one season at Alcorn State.^[5]

In 1979, he participated in the Disco Demolition Night at Comiskey Park, home of theChicago White Sox, where he was among the first 100 people to run onto the field and he slid into third base. During the ensuing riot his silver belt buckle was stolen^[6] while he was stealing a baseball bat from the dugout.^[7]

Career

Duncan took other security jobs while in Los Angeles while trying to get some acting work in commercials. During this time, he worked as a bodyguard for celebrities like Will Smith, Martin Lawrence, Jamie Foxx, LL Cool J, and The Notorious B.I.G., all the while doing bit parts in television and films. When the Notorious B.I.G. was killed in 1997, Duncan quit this line of work.^[3]

After having begun his career with several bit parts playing bouncers in films such as Bulworth and A Night at the Roxbury, Duncan first came to prominence when he was cast as Bear in the blockbuster Michael Bay action film Armageddon (1998). During the production of the film, Duncan struck up a friendship with castmate Bruce Willis and it was Willis' influence that helped him to get his breakout role as gentle giant John Coffey in the Frank Darabont-directed The Green Mile (1999). Starring alongside Tom Hanks, Duncan's acclaimed performance netted him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role and a Golden Globe nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture.^[8][9]

Following his iconic dramatic turn as Coffey, Duncan was then cast in a string of films that helped to establish him as a star adept at both action and comedy: The Whole Nine Yards (2000), Planet of the Apes (2001), The Scorpion King (2002) (where he starred alongside his friend, The Rock), and Daredevil (2003) (reuniting him with Armageddon co-star Ben Affleck) as Wilson Fisk, aka The Kingpin.

Duncan signed on for the role of the Kingpin in January 2002, though he had been attached far earlier.^[10] When he was cast, he weighed 290 pounds. He was asked to gain 40 pounds for the role in order to fit the physique of Kingpin. In order to do this, he would lift weights for 30 minutes a day, and power-lifted with one or two reps a day, as well as eating whatever he wanted. Despite this, Duncan's biggest concern was that he was black, because Kingpin had always been portrayed as white.^[11] He spoke on the fans' loyalty to the source material by saying "they watch movies to say, 'Hey, that's not like the comic book.' But I want them to get past that and just see the movie for what it is and see me for what I am—an actor."^[12]

In July 2006, Duncan showed interest in returning for the role of the Kingpin, but stated that he would not be willing to gain weight as he felt "comfortable" being down to 270 pounds. However, he jokingly showed willingness to change his mind if he were offered $20 million. Duncan suggested that the character be portrayed as having been training a lot in jail in order to become faster in combat against Daredevil, also working as a way to fit his weight loss into the story.^[13] In 2009, he stopped eating meat and later appeared in a PETAad campaign, touting the health benefits and his increased strength from a vegetarian diet.^[14]

In 2005, Duncan starred in two prominent action films, The Island (his second Michael Bay Film) and Sin City (again alongside Bruce Willis) where he played Manute, a powerful mobster. Duncan appeared in a supporting role in the 2006 comedy Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby as Lucius Washington and, in 2009, Duncan played Balgrog in Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li and the titular Cleon "Slammin'" Salmon in Broken Lizard's farce The Slammin' Salmon.

Famous for his deep baritone, Duncan also provided his voice for a number of roles, for films such as Brother Bear (2003) and its sequel,Brother Bear 2, Kung Fu Panda (2008), Green Lantern (2011), TV series such as Loonatics Unleased and Codename: Kids Next Door: Operation ZERO, Quiznos commercials, and a number of video games such as Demon Stone, SOCOM II: U.S. Navy SEALs, The Suffering: Ties That Bind, Saints Row, Soldier of Fortune, and God of War II, where he provided the voice of Atlas the Titan. He additionally reprised his role as the Kingpin in Spider-Man: The New Animated Series.

In addition to his film roles, Duncan also guest starred in numerous television shows. Among these, he appeared in an episode of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and a first-season episode of CSI: NY.^[15] In 2008, he appeared as "Mr. Colt" in the second-season premiere of Chuck, "Chuck Versus the First Date"^[16] and as a guest star on two episodes of Two and a Half Men. Most notably, in April 2011, Duncan guest starred on an episode of TV series Bones as Leo Knox which, in 2012, led to Duncan receiving his first starring role as the same character in the spinoff series The Finder.

During the week of May 14, 2012, Duncan appeared on the late night talk show The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson as a guest, when the show was taping for a week in Scotland. Duncan was one of the show's most frequent guests, appearing a total of 18 times, and, the day after Duncan's death in September, Ferguson began his show with a special tribute to him.